


Three Wandering Stars

by Ravenof_flame



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ben Solo Needs A Hug, F/M, Force Ghost(s), Force Visions, Harry Needs a Hug, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Ravenclaw Hermione, Reylo - Freeform, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Spoilers, The Force, The Millennium Falcon - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-30
Updated: 2020-02-07
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:21:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,953
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22032460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ravenof_flame/pseuds/Ravenof_flame
Summary: They had been victorious. And yet she felt so alone.But what if something no one expected occurred? What if, when Ben Solo had saved Rey by putting all of his own life force into her, the amount of energy resulted in more than just a Rey's resurrection?However, just as her miracle comes, Rey is forced to make a hard decision to keep both him and the Galaxy safe. So the three of them were separated by both death and destiny.Rey seeks knowledge and understanding within The Force. However, what she desires most is to not be alone.Ben seeks to keep those he left behind safe, even if he must do it from beyond the grave.And Harry? He just wants to understand his place in the wider Galaxy and to have people who love him.Can these three wandering stars unite to protect the balance of The Force?
Relationships: Rey and Harry potter, Rey/Ben Solo, ben solo and Harry potter
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	1. Your not alone

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own anything. Everything you see hear belongs to it's respective owners.

Chapter 1:

Two months. It had been two months since they had finally defeated Palpatine and The Last Order. Two months since the two of them had thought, finally side by side. Two halves united as one.  
Rey had almost lost hope that Ben Solo could be redeemed. And yet, beyond all hope, he had come to her. After all of the fighting, the pain, he had joined her. He had come back to the light. She had finished the task that Han had died for. That Leia had fought for until her dying breath.  
Rey thought that finally, they could be together. She was ready to finally take his hand and bring balance to the galaxy, together. And so they had done.  
And then he had fallen down the hole.  
Rey had been overcome with grief. She was being overpowered. Then, she heard the voices of all of the past Jedi. She put all of her energy into pushing back against Palpatine. Finally, with the strength of all of the Jedi behind her, she was able to defeat him.  
But it had been to much for her. She could feel herself slipping away. Her only regret was that she was unable to tell Ben how she truly felt. She hoped he could sense it through their strange bond.  
But then, by some miracle, she could feel herself in someone's arms. She felt life being pored back into her. When she gained full awareness, she saw that Ben had pulled himself out of the pit and had used the force to heel her.  
But it had been too much.  
Ben was now completely drained. In that moment, she new that she was still going to loose him. The kiss they shared was full of emotion. Joy from their victory. Happiness at being together at last. But also grief that this moment could not last for much longer.  
Rey felt her heart break as she saw Ben Solo fade into the force.  
Over the past two months she and the rest of the resistance had been trying to fix the Galaxy. Everything had been so busy, that she had had hardly any time to talk to any of her friends. She thought that this might have been a good thing, as she was still morning after Ben.  
Though for a long time they had thought against each other, there were still moments when there was more than just fighting. Moments when she saw beyond Kylo Ren, to the person under the mask. The man who's entire being radiated conflict.  
She remembered that night in the cave, when she had attempted to find out more about her parents. She had felt so alone.  
"You're not alone."  
He had said. In that moment, she did not feel alone.  
Now, she felt all so alone. How cruel fait was. For them to finally be united, only to be torn apart.  
Rey was now in The Falcon. She was in her sleeping quoters, alone and attempting to meditate.  
She had been travelling around the Galaxy, trying to gather more information about the old Jedi. She wished to find where they had succeeded and where they had failed, so she might be able to build a new order, free of their old faults. However, she still had so much to learn, and nothing but her old books to learn from.  
Lately, she had been feeling strange. She did not know why, and she was trying to find out.  
As she meditated, she looked inward. She could feel something inside of her. Something strange, new, powerful... Life?  
How was this possible? The closest she had ever been with someone had been Ben, but they had never...  
She looked for answers in the force.  
Her vision flashed to the aftermath of the battle, when Ben had used his own life energy to save her. He had put so much... Could it be that he put too much.... Enough to create, more life...?  
She looked more carefully at the life within her. The force signature, it felt so much like her own... And yet it also felt like his...  
It couldn't be...  
And yet... She new the truth.  
When Ben had given all of his life energy to her to save her life, he had put too much for one person. So the remaining energy manifested into new life. A child. Their child.  
Rey felt tears filling her eyes. This was incredible. A part of Ben still lived on. Growing inside of her.  
She couldn't tell anyone. There were still many in the Galaxy that saw only Kylo Ren and the first order. She had to keep this child a secret, for all of their safety.  
She put a hand on her stomach and felt again through the force the life that was growing inside of her.

For the next seven months, Rey mostly stuck to the Outer-Rim systems where it was less likely for her to be recognised. She had to constantly restock on supplies, as she found that her little Solo caused her to need constant nourishment. Whenever Poe or Finn asked her where she was, she would always say she was on a really important self appointed mission. When they asked what it was, she would say it was Jedi business. She did not like having to deceive her friends, but it was necessary to keep her child safe.  
Rey could sense through the force that the child was going to be a boy. She had taken to calling him Her Little Solo. She could already sense he would take after his father and grandfather, if the amount of kicking was anything to go by. She had decided he would have Ben's last name, to honor the father he would never know.  
She had also decided to tell him the truth once he was old enough. She did not want him to find out the truth of his heritage in a horrific manner, just as she and Luke had.  
Finally, the fateful day came.  
She had put the Falcon into auto-piolet, and was about to go to sleep. She was on her way to a safe system where she could give birth in peace. Once he was born, Rey was planning to show her son to Finn and Poe. Hopefully, they would help her conceal his true identity.  
However, she was not expecting the child to come, a week before scheduled. She was woken up by sudden cramps. The next few hours were extremely painful for Rey. But finally, she heard her son's cries for the first time.  
She gathered all of the medical supplies on the ship that she needed and proceeded to cut the cord and clean her baby. She rapped him in a blanket and crawled him in her arms.  
She tiredly looked down at her baby for the first time.  
His hair was jet black and messy, much like Ben's had been. She smiled as she saw that he had inherited much of his father's appearance. Even with all of the baby fat, Rey could tell that he would grow up to strongly resemble Ben Solo.  
But the most striking part of him were his eyes. When his eyes first flickered open, Rey's breath hitched.  
They were a brilliant emerald green. Those bright orbs glowed with the force. It was beautiful and breath-taking.  
Rey could sense without trying that he was power. She stroked his hair. This child represented so much. The union of two powerful force users, descended from two families who were strong in The Force. The rise of a new order. The beginning of a new age in the Galaxy.  
Rey closed her eyes. She had made so many plans over the last seven months. And yet, she had forgotten one thing. A name. What was she to call her little Solo?  
Through the force, a name came to her.  
Harry.  
She had no idea where the name came from, but somehow she new this was the right name for him.  
"Well," She said. "Harry Solo it is."  
Harry gave her a gummy smile.  
Rey smiled in return. She went to lay down, her child in her arms and a smile on her face.

Suddenly, Rey received a vision through The Force.  
She saw darkness, but also light.  
She saw dark hooded figures, fighting strange light out of sticks. She saw the figures being pushed back by others, but these others were not strong enough.  
Suddenly, a new figure joined the fray. She saw he was a young man with mess dark hair. In one hand was another strange stick, but in the other was a glowing lightsaber.  
Suddenly the vision change.  
A snake faced figure was now facing against an old man. The snake faced figure radiated the dark side. The old man the light side.  
And then, the young man again.  
He radiated not the light, not the dark, but both. He was balanced in the force and stronger for it.  
The vision changed again.  
She was on the grounds of a castle. It was dark. She felt so alone.  
Suddenly, there was light.  
Three stars sawed over in the dark sky. They appeared to separate for a long time. But then they came back together in a flash of light.  
"Rey!"  
She turned. Directly behind her, close enough to touch, was Ben.  
"Ben." She breathed, hardly believe what she was seeing.  
Ben reached for her as he had done so many times before.  
"Your not alone."  
She took his hand.  
Suddenly, she was awoken.  
She sat up, gasping. She heard a cry, and looked down to see that she had woken up Harry.  
"Shhh." She hushed him, clutched the child to her breast.  
As she rocked the child gently, Rey thought about her dream.  
What had it meant? Was it some sort of warning through the force? Why was Ben their? And most importantly, who was that young man with the lightsaber?

For the next few days she meditated, seeking answers to her questions through The Force.  
Finally, she had an unexpected visitor in the form of a Force Ghost.  
She had just put Harry to sleep and was preparing to meditate once again, when she saw him.  
The Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker stood their, watching her.  
"Hello Rey." He greeted.  
"Luke." She breathed.  
"I'm hear to talk to you about your son."  
Rey sucked in a breath.  
"What about him?" She asked.  
"Just after he was born, you received a vision through The Force."  
"Yes, and I've been trying to decipher it ever since." Rey replied.  
Luke seemed to sigh.  
"Rey, there is something very important you need to know."  
He gestured for her to sit down.  
Once Rey was seated, he continued.  
In the far Outer-Rim, there exists a planet where The Force has manifested in an... Unusual way. While there are a large number of people who are strong in The Force, they a learnt to rely on channeling there power through sticks which they call wands. Very recently, a dark Force user has risen to power."  
"What does this have to do with Harry?" Rey asked.  
Luke sighed.  
"You see, this Force user only fears one person. A very powerful light Force user. However, these two are currently in a stalemate. If either side wins over the other, then The Force in this world will be imbalanced. If this were to happen, then it will spread to the rest of the Galaxy. However, there is a way to stop it."  
"Your not say...?" Rey asked incredulously. Harry was just a baby. He couldn't bring balance to The Force.  
"Harry is destined to grow and bring balance to The Force, just as all of the Skywalker bloodline of done." Luke continued. "However, he will not be alone."  
Rey thought over her vision.  
"Three shooting stars..."  
"Yes." Luke said. "Three shooting stars. Though the three of you must be separated, you will reunite when the time is right."  
Rey blinked. He had said "you", as if he were talking to her. But if she was one, and Harry was another, then who was the third shooting star? She thought over her vision again. The only other person she had seen that it could possibly be was...  
"But... You can't mean..."  
Luke nodded.  
"But Ben is... He is dead."  
Luke shrugged.  
"The Force works in mysterious ways."  
Rey thought over the situation.  
"What do I have to do?" She finally asked.  
Luke looked down, not meeting her eyes.  
"You have to go to this planet, and take Harry to where The Force tells you to. And then you must leave him there so that he can learn the ways of this planet's Force Users."  
"No!" Rey replied, angered. "No, I can't just..."  
"Rey." Luke said. "You must. If the balance is to be kept, then you must make this sacrifice."  
Tears came to Rey's eyes.  
"I can't." She said. "I can't abandon him."  
She remembered her own life, growing up on Jakku with no one to care about her.  
Luke walked over to her and seemed to try and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.  
"It will be alright." He said. "This must be done."  
Rey could sense that this was true. The Force was telling her that for her vision to come to fruition, she had to make the hard choice.  
"Do not worry Rey." Luke said. "You will see him again."

For the next three months, Rey traveled to where Luke had directed her to. She spent the time, when not piloting the Falcon, spending as much time as possible with Harry.  
She wanted to make the most of the limited time she had with him.  
One of their favourite games was for Rey to use the force to levitate small objects in the air over Harry and him to try and hit them with his small baby hands.  
All too soon, Rey could see the planet, Earth, which Luke and described.  
Rey took a deep breath.  
"This is it." She said to Harry.  
She let The Force guide her to where she needed to take her little Solo.  
Upon landing, Rey lifted her little bundle into her arms and departed The Falcon. She walked down the ramp onto the cool soil. It was the middle of the night. Rey appeared to be on the outskirts of a small village.  
As The Force led Rey down the streets, she noted that the technology seemed far less advanced than the rest of the galaxy. However, she could also feel that The Force was extremely powerful in this world. She hoped that Harry would be safe hear.  
Finally, Rey found herself in front of a house, with lights coming through the window.  
She drew a piece of old paper from her pocket. When she had been in the process of moving the ancient Jedi texts into The Falcon, she had noticed several old writing implements, such as old worn paper and bottles of ink. Until recently she had been using them to take down notes of any information she find in her travels. Now however, she used it to write a small letter addressed to whom ever became the guardians of her son.  
She walked up to the front door. With every step her heart felt heavier. It hurt so much. She had carried this child inside of her for so long. Felt him through the force as he grew within her.  
For as long as she could remember she sort her family. This child was all the blood family she had, and she was just giving him away?  
Just as she reached the door, she hesitated. What if she was making a mistake? What if Harry became as alone as she had been... Have she still felt at times.  
"You are not alone, and neither is he."  
Rey turned. For a second she thought she had heard...  
She shook her head. She had to do this. If what Luke had said was true, then The Force would be in danger of becoming unbalanced again if she did not do this.  
So with a heavy heart and tears in her eyes, she laid her child down on the door step and placed her short letter on top of him. She nocked once. Then she nocked again until she could sense someone coming to the door. Quickly, she ran to the street. She hid behind a fence and watched as a young red-haired woman opened the door. She watched as her little Solo was picked up and carried inside of the house.  
"The Force will be with you Harry." She whispered. "Always."  
And with one final look, Rey departed from the primitive world where The Force ran so strongly. As The Falcon left the atmosphere, she finally let her tears fall.  
"Do not worry Harry." She said to herself. "You're not alone."  
Rey did not know if she imagined it, but she could have swan she heard an all too familiar voice.  
"Neither are you."


	2. From within the Cosmic Force

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben Solo might be dead. But he's not going to let a little thing like death stop him from taking care of the ones he loves.

Chapter 2:  
From within The Cosmic Force, Ben Solo was watching. It was about all he could do at that moment. He wished he could be closer to Rey, but he couldn't. He was dead. Nothing could change this fact.  
He remembered how he used to be. He used to be torn between the light and the dark. He thought he could only be one or the other. He was in constant conflict with himself.  
He had thought that by killing his father, he could bring an end to his pain. But that only made it worse. He had lost all hope of bring an end to the conflict within him.  
And then she had come.  
He still did not know how, but somehow a mere scavenger girl had come into his life and changed it forever. While at first she hated him, both had learned to care for each other. She brought out the light in him.  
He had tried so many times to turn her to his side. And yet, after all that he had done to her, she had shone him mercy. She had healed his wounds. And when she had healed him, he felt as if this was what began to push him further into the light.  
The vision he had of his father only further cemented his change.  
He had ended up turning to her side. But it ended up being too late.  
He could still remember seeing her lifeless body. He could still remember feeling her life fading away. In desperation, he had put all of the life energy he had had left into her. This had resulted in him dying instead.  
At the time, he had not regretted it. He had managed to save Rey, and that was all that mattered. But now... He wished he could be with her, hold her, speak to her. In re realm of The Cosmic Force, he never left her side. However, both were still so alone.  
Then he had sensed it. A new life form, growing inside of Rey. He could see it through The Force, a child. Their child. His child.  
He was both full of joy and sadness. He was joyed that a part of him was still with Rey, and that she would not be alone. But then, he was sad because he could not be with them.  
Over the coming months, Ben watched as the child grew inside of Rey. He, for he new it was a he, was powerful. Ben could see The Force flowing through him.  
Ben was there every second of Rey's labor. He smiled with her as their child was born. His heart ached when he saw how strongly the child resembled him. Ben had no idea where Rey had found the name Harry, but he was not about to argue what she decided to name their child. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't.  
Then the vision came.  
Ben new that Rey had received the exact same vision. He could see it in her eyes.  
In this vision, he was able to speak to her, even if for only a few seconds. He had reached for her, as he had done so many times.  
"Your not alone." He had said, hoping that she had understood what he had said. He wanted to tell her that he was always with her. But he couldn't. He had only had a few seconds.  
His breath had court when she had taken his hand. For that one second, he could feel her as strongly as he had when he was alive.  
He did not know what the vision had meant, and had puzzled through it with her for months.  
Then, he had a visitor.  
"Ben."  
He turned around to see his grandfather, Anakin Skywalker, standing only a few feet away from him.  
"Grandfather." He greeted.  
"Ben, you need to listen to me." Anakin continued. "The vision you had Rey received a few months ago through The Force, if it is not fulfilled then the entire balance of The Force may be in danger."  
"What did it mean?" Ben asked.  
"In the far outer-rim," Anakin began. "There is a system which has a large population of Force users. On this system, The Force is very potent. However, the Force users of this system have learnt to rely on conducts which they call wands to channel The Force through."  
Ben furrowed his eyebrows.  
"How is this important?"  
"Right now, there are two strong Force users engaged in a terrible conflict. One his deeply in the dark, and one is deeply in the light. If either one is victorious, then the balance will be destroyed."  
"What can Rey and I do?" Ben asked. "I am dead, and I highly doubt she would be willing to join another conflict with a child."  
Anakin frowned.  
"That is where it gets complicated."  
He looked at Ben seriously.  
"Long ago, the old Jedi believed that I was prophesied to bring balance to The Force. However, it is actually the duty of the Skywalker bloodline to protect the balance."  
Ben frowned.  
"But there is no one left alive who is of the Skywalker bloodline. Unless... You don't mean...?"  
Anakin nodded.  
"But, Harry can't. He is a child."  
"But he will grow." Anakin replied. "When he is older, he is destined to defeat both of these Force users. However, he will not do this alone. He will have both you and Rey."  
Ben frowned.  
"How?"  
Anakin shook his head.  
"I cannot tell you yet."  
Ben took a deep breath.  
"What must I do?"  
Anakin's expression became uncomfortable.  
"You must be there for your son, for both you and Rey."  
Ben frowned.  
"How am I supposed to do that? I what do you mean, for my myself and Rey?"  
Anakin sighed.  
"In order for the vision to be fulfilled, Rey must leave Harry with a Force user family of this system."  
Ben shook his head.  
"She will never do this."  
"She will if she must." Anakin replied. "And as for you, while you cannot be with Harry physically, you can still communicate with him through The Force."  
"How?" Ben asked.  
"Just let The Force guide you Ben."  
And with that, Anakin Skywalker faded back into The Cosmic Force.

While Rey tried to find this system, Ben concentrated within The Force. He needed to do this so that he was able to communicate with those he left behind.  
He watched as Rey found the system. He watched as she landed the Falcon and used The Force to guide her to where she had to leave their son.  
He watched as she, with much hesitation, placed the child onto a doorstep and knocked on the door until she could sense someone coming. He watched as she ran back to the Falcon and left the atmosphere. Ben listened as she spoke to herself.  
"Do not worry Harry," She muttered. "You're not alone."  
He listened as she said the words he had said to her. He could sense that she now felt just as alone as she felt after she had went into that cave. And so, listening more to his feels than anything else, he said the words she had said to him.  
"Neither are you."  
He saw Rey jerk, as if she had heard him. Ben hoped she did.

Over the next year or so, Ben watched as the young couple, whom he learnt were named James and Lily Potter, cared for Harry as if he were their own. He filled him with joy to see that his son was loved and cared for, as he rightly deserved. Even if there was a war happening in their world, they still remained kind and happy with the young child.  
Then, the family was forced into hiding.  
They were told by an old man that a seer had predicted the end of the dark Force user they were fighting, or as they called him, the dark wizard Voldemort. More importantly, that it would come at the hands of young Harry. So this Voldemort was most likely going to target the Potters.  
Ben new that this old man, whom he learnt was called Dumbledore, was the light Force user from the vision. He also new that Voldemort was the dark Force user. So he was concerned when the people who The Force had intended to be Harry's guardians had to go into hiding at the instruction of one because the other would try to kill them.  
With an ever increasing sense of dread, he watched and waited. That was all he could do. Watch and wait until Voldemort inevitable came for the Potters, and his son.  
And so, almost a year after Rey had left Harry on the Potter's doorstep, Voldemort attacked.  
Ben could only watch as the man who for the past year had fulfilled the role that he himself could not, as Harry's father, thought bravely against the dark wizard.  
Ben noticed that, in the man's haste, he had forgotten to pick up his wand. Channeling his energy through The Cosmic Force into the material world, Ben assisted by lifting the wand and practically throwing it into James's hand. At first, the man was surprised. However, he quickly recovered in the face of danger. The man thought bravely. But it was not enough. Voldemort was too powerful.  
Voldemort channeled The Force and released a beam of energy intended to kill. Ben's heart ached as he sensed James Potter become one with The Force. And yet again, Harry had lost a father in his short life.  
With mounting fear he watched as Voldemort climbed the stairs to where Lily had taken Harry. Ben new that he could not do much else. He had been stretching his limits when he had given James his wand, and he could sense that soon, he would need all the energy he could get.  
He watched as Voldemort blasted through the nursery door. Now there was nothing standing between the red-haired woman and the Dark Force user.  
Ben could not help but be grateful when he saw how Lily begged Voldemort, not for her own life, but for Harry's. She would die for a child that wasn't even her own, and for that, Ben Solo would be forever grateful. So it was with great sorrow that he watched her body fall to the floor and sense her spirit become one with The Force.  
Voldemort then turned his eyes on Harry.  
Ben new he had to do something. He would not let his child die. He would not let James and Lily's sacrifice be in vain. He had to do something, anything. For the Potters. For Rey. For his son.  
So, when Voldemort yet again cast the sickly green killing curse, Ben channeled all of The Force energy he could muster into protecting Harry. The spell was powerful, but he was still of the Skywalker bloodline. The Force flowed strong in his family.  
However, it was not enough. He was still beginning how to learn to channel his energy from The Cosmic Force into the Material realm. No matter how powerful he was, it was still not enough to deflect such a powerful curse.  
Then, he could sense others joining him.  
He turned to see his mother, standing behind him. She smiled at him and he smiled back. He then saw Luke Skywalker appear beside her. Then Anakin straight after him.  
All of the past members of the Skywalker bloodline were now joining together to protect Harry. With the hour of them together, a shield of pure Force energy appeared between the child and the dark Force user. The green curse rebounded and hit Voldemort. The dark Force user crumbled to dust. A shade appeared, dark, twisted, corrupted. Suddenly, a small fragment of the fade broke off from the whole. Before any of the present Skywalkers could stop it, the fragment absorbed itself into Harry. Ben went to try and remove the corrupted soul fragment from his son, but he was stopped by his mother.  
"No Ben." She said. "This had to happen."  
"But..." Ben began.  
"Do not worry." His mother said comfortingly. "All will be clear in time."  
In resignation, Ben watched as the dark shade escaped into the night.  
Ben watched as at first, a man whom was a friend of the Potters found Harry. Then, a giant of a man arrived. The man who Ben remembered was called Sirius gave Harry to the Giant, and said that he could use his flying Motorbike.  
Ben watched as the giant flew his son all the way to where there were a gathering of houses. Each of these houses looked practically identical.  
Ben then saw that the giant was meeting with Dumbledore and a middle aged woman whom gave Ben the impression of something feline. With trepidation, he watched as Dumbledore placed Harry on a doorstep, with nothing put a blanket to keep him warm and a note to explain the situation. He did not even nock on the door to draw anyone's attention.  
As they left, Ben could only stand by his son and try to use whatever energy he had left to preserve the heat around his son to protect the small child from the cold. He could sense that he would need more practice in communicating with those who were still living, as he could sense that the people whom his son had been left with were not as kind as the Potters.  
It did not take long for Ben to realise that this was a great understatement.

Harry was excited. He was very rarely excited, because he very rarely had reason to be excited. But today, he had a reason to. For today, he was beginning school.  
His Aunt and Uncle had told him that if he didn't go, then the neighbours would get suspicious. And there was nothing that the Dursleys cared more about than their reputation.  
Harry was not complaining. He was finally going to be allowed to leave the house. Who knows, maybe he will make a new friend.  
Uncle Vernon drove both him and Dudley to school. He had taken the day off work, just to take Dudley to school for the first time.  
Harry looked out the window in wonder. He had never seen so many people. There were so many adults and children alike. Harry could not wait to meet them all.  
Both they entered the school, Uncle Vernon said his goodbyes.  
"Go and have fun now." He said to Dudley. Then he turned to Harry. "And you, don't you dare do anything freakish, or you will be in your cupboard without food for a week."  
"Yes Uncle Vernon." Harry replied.

Harry looked around at all of the other kids in the classroom. There were around twenty kids, and they were all hyper actively running around. Then, the teacher came and called the class to order.  
"Hello children," She said. "My name is Miss Bennet. Now, I am going to call your name and when I do, I want you to take a seat quietly."  
And so she began to call out names. Everything seemed to be going well, until she came to Harry's name.  
"Harry Potter?"  
"Yes miss Bennet." He said, trying to find a seat as far away from Dudley as possible.  
"That's not his name!" Dudley said suddenly, snickering. "His name is Freak."  
The rest of the class laughed, but Miss Bennet frowned.  
"That is not a nice thing to say Dudley." She said patiently.  
"But Mum and Dad call him that all the time." Dudley retorted.  
Miss Bennet's thrown deepened.  
"Well, I will not tolerate such behaviour in my class."  
Harry had to hold back his laugh. This was probably the first time Dudley had heard any word that was related to the word "no".

Harry decided that he liked Miss Bennet. She was nice and didn't get angry when one of the kids made a mistake, not even Harry.  
At recess, Harry immediately went to one of the swings at the playground. His Aunt and Uncle hadn't given him any food, so he had nothing to eat with the rest of the kids.  
As most of the kids were still eating, the playground was somewhat quiet. Harry liked the quiet. It gave him time to think. He did not know why, but he always felt calmer when it was quiet.  
He was thinking, gently swinging himself back and forth, when a voice broke him from his thoughts.  
"Hello Harry."  
He looked up.  
"Hello, Miss Bennet." He said shyly.  
Miss Bennet smiled and knelt so she was at his level.  
"What are you doing out hear? Don't you have any food?"  
Harry averted his eyes.  
"I wasn't hungry." He muttered.  
He could see Miss Bennet thrown out of the corner of his eye.  
"Did your parents give in any food?"  
Harry shook his head.  
"They're dead."  
"Oh, I'm sorry." Miss Bennet replied.  
Harry shrugged.  
"It's okay, I was only a baby. But my Aunt and Uncle say they were drunks who died in a car crash."  
"What?"  
He looked up to see that Miss Bennet had a shocked expression on her face.  
"What? Did I say a bad word? Is drunks a bad word? What does it mean Miss?"  
"No, no, you did nothing wrong Harry." Miss Bennet said, a fake smile on her face.  
Harry could tell that she was lying, because there was something telling him that she was still shocked. But she was also beginning to seem angry. Harry was very familiar with the feeling of anger, as Uncle Vernon got angry a lot. And he always took his anger out on Harry.  
Harry did not know how, but he could always sense what people were feeling. He supposed it had something to do with his "Freakiness", as his relatives would put it.

A few minutes later, after Miss Bennet had left, harry was broken out of his thoughts again by Dudley.  
"Hey, Freak!" He said, a gang of other boys around him. "Get off the swing!"  
"But I'm still using it."  
"I said, get off!" Dudley said, before walking up to harry and pushing him off.  
Harry landed hard on the ground. The other boys laughed. Harry quickly got up so that he didn't get kicked by Dudley. He managed to get a few metres away before he coughed up dirt.  
"Excuse me, boys."  
Harry, dudley, and Dudleys friends turned to see a teacher walking to them. Harry could both see and sense that he was not happy. Harry shrunk into himself, afraid that the teacher was angry with him. But instead, his angry gaze turned towards Dudley.  
"What do you think you are doing?" He said sternly. Dudley was unfazed.  
"I'm playing." He replied.  
"Why did you push him off of the swing?" The teacher asked.  
Dudley merely shrugged.  
"I wanted to go on the swing, and he wouldn't get off when I told him to."  
"Did you ask him?"  
"No," Dudley replied. "Dad says we don't ask Freaks for anything."  
The teacher's expression only darkened.  
"You shouldn't call people names."  
"But Mum and Dad call him that all the time." Dudley argued, looking a! the teacher as if he were stupid. "Honestly, your as dumb as my teacher."  
"Well, I will be having a few words with your parents."  
"Please don't!" Harry begged. "It's my fault. I didn't get off the swing..."  
The teacher only smiled at him reassuringly and took his hand.  
"Don't worry, everything will be okay. I will take you to the nurse's office, and then have a word with your parents..."  
"My parents are dead." Harry interrupted. "I live with my Aunt and Uncle."  
"Oh." The teacher replied, beginning to walk with Harry to the Nurse's office.  
"So that boy is..."  
"My cousin." Harry replied.  
The teacher frowned.  
"Does he treat you like this often?"  
"All the time." Harry replied. "Don't worry, I'm used to it."  
The teacher's thrown deepened.  
"What's your name?"  
"Harry sir."  
"Well Harry," He said. "Who is your teacher?"  
"Miss Bennet sir."  
"Thank you." The teacher replied. "Do not worry. We'll get you fixed up, and then Miss Bennet and I will call your Aunt and Uncle and have a word with them."  
"Please don't." Harry begged. "You'll only make things worse."  
The teacher frowned.  
"Don't worry. Everything will be okay."  
Harry ended up only having a few scraps and scratches, mostly on his face. The nurse still cleaned the dirt from him. His knee was scraped, so the nurse put a band-aid on it.

At lunch, he was called to the Principal's office. He didn't have any lunch, so he was alright with going straight after the bell.  
Even from down the corridor, Harry could hear his Uncle yelling.  
"What do you mean, Dudley has been behaving badly! It's the boy who's trouble!"  
Harry took a deep breath. Nervously, he walked to the office door and knocked before entering.  
In the office, Harry could see the Principal, Miss Bennet, and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. Uncle Vernon was a brilliant shade of purple, and Aunt Petunia had a scowl on her face. Miss Bennet was glaring at Uncle Vernon. The Principal sat behind his desk patiently, but Harry could sense he was getting annoyed.  
"What I am saying, Mr Dursley." The Principal said patiently. "Is that your son has been bullying other students, most specifically one student. I cannot tell you how disgusted I was to learn that he was his own cousin."  
Miss Bennet quietly got up from her chair and walked over to Harry.  
"It's okay Harry." She said. "Everything is going to be okay."  
Harry had a hard time believing her.  
"My son is a little angel." Aunt Petunia snapped. "It is that boy," She said, gesturing towards Harry. "Who is the trouble maker."  
"You are mistaken." Miss Bennet replied. "Harry is the best behaved child I have ever met. Whereas Dudley is one of the worst. I have received reports that, during recess, your so called "Little angel", pushed Harry off the swing after demanding the poor boy get off. Dudley didn't even ask nicely."  
"He doesn't respond well to requests." Uncle Vernon retorted. "The boy needs to be forcefully told if you expect to get a reaction out of him."  
Both Miss Bennet and the Principal frowned.  
"I find that very hard to believe." Miss Bennet muttered. "And what about the name calling?"  
"What do you mean?" Aunt Petunia asked.  
Miss Bennet took a deep breath.  
"When I was call role this morning, Dudley told me that in your household, Harry is referred to as Freak."  
Both Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon suddenly looked uncomfortable.  
"Well... Umm..." Uncle Vernon stuttered. "He has obviously taken things out of context."  
Miss Bennet raised an eyebrow.  
"Oh really." She replied, a note of sarcasm in her voice.  
At the end of the meeting, the Principal informed Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia that they would be in touch with child services, and that they should be expecting a visit from them within a week.

For the next week, the Dursleys were on edge. Harry did not know what child services was, but he new it absolutely scared his Aunt and Uncle.  
Miss Bennet continued to be nice to Harry. She even organised a trip for the two of them to go on Saturday to somewhere called an optometrist, once she saw that he had trouble reading. She was nice enough to pay for his glasses.  
However, this visit that the Principal promised never came.  
When next Monday came, Harry's class had a new teacher. When he asked what had happened to Miss Bennet, the new teacher said that she had family issues, and had !o move away.  
Harry was sad, as he had come to like Miss Bennet. This new teacher just ignored Dudley's bad behaviour. This was true for all of the teachers. When Dudley and his gang beat up any of the other kids on the playground, mostly Harry, none of the teachers came to stop it.  
Harry felt sad. Dudley was constantly hunting him down in the school yard and beating him up. Aunt Petunia was now making him do more chores than ever, which meant he had no time to do his home besides the dead of the night. Harry was now expected to clean the house, tend to the garden, and cook for the Dursleys. At the moment, Aunt Petunia hovered behind him, making sure he didn't make any mistakes. But she said that once she was satisfied with his cooking ability, he would be on his own.  
Harry curled up in his dark cupboard and cried.  
Why did his Mummy and Daddy have to leave him? Why didn't anyone love him? Why did he have to be such a freak?  
Harry could hear things rattling inside his cupboard, but he didn't care.  
He felt sad. he felt cold. But most of all, he felt alone.  
Suddenly, he could feel a strange warmth surrounding him.  
Harry did not know why, but whenever he got really emotional, he thought he could sense another presence. This presence would surround him, comfort him, as if he were in someone's embrace.  
Then, a new surprise came. This surprise came in the form of a voice in his ear.  
"Your not alone."  
Harry opened his eyes, startled. In the dark he looked around, searching for whomever the voice belonged to. The voice had sounded deep and masculine.  
"Hello?" He said nervously. "Is anyway there?"  
The warm presence surrounding him faded a little.  
"You can hear me?" The voice asked. This time, it seemed as if the voice came from everywhere.  
"Yeah." Harry replied. "Where are you?"  
For a long time, the voice was silent.  
"I'm hear." He finally said.  
"Where's hear?" Harry asked.  
"I'm hear, with you. As I have always been."  
"Are you an angel?" Harry asked nervously.  
The voice chuckled.  
"Not exactly."  
"Then what are you?" Harry asked.  
Again, the voice was silent. Then, it replied.  
"I suppose you would call me a ghost."  
Harry looked around, trying to see if he could catch a glimpse of this mystery ghost.  
"You don't feel like a ghost." Harry replied. "I don't feel scared of you at all."  
"That is because I do not wish for you to be scared of me." The voice replied.  
Harry squinted.  
"So... What's your name?" Harry asked. "And what do you want?"  
"All I want," The ghost said. "Is to make sure you don't feel alone."  
"Do you know what happened to Miss Bennet?" Harry asked.  
"There are powers, that you do not understand." The voice replied. "They caused Miss Bennet to leave."  
"Is she dead?" Harry asked, tears prickling in his eyes.  
"No, no." The voice said, the comforting warm presence strengthening around Harry.  
"She has just been... Compelled to go away."  
"You mean like magic?" Harry asked.  
"Some would call it that." The voice replied.  
"But Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon say that Magic's not real." Harry said.  
"And do you believe them?" The voice asked.  
Harry thought for a long time.  
"No." He finally said.  
"Do not worry, Miss Bennet is perfectly fine." The voice comforted.  
Harry shuffled on the thin mattress he called a bed.  
"You never told me what your name is." He said finally.  
The voice was silent for a long time.  
"Call me Ben." He finally said.  
Harry yawned a laid down.  
"Well, goodnight Ben." He said.  
"Goodnight Harry." Ben replied.  
"Ben?" Harry asked.  
"Yes?"  
"Will you stay with me?"  
"I am always with you." Ben replied.  
And so, with the comforting presence of Ben surrounding him, Harry fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww poor Harry. Well, at least it looks like Ben has finally figured out how to comunicate with the living through The Force.  
> Has anyone ever found it strange that the Dursleys were able to get away with their treatment of Harry? Surely someone, anyone, might have noticed the difference between the fat, well taken care of Dudley, and the small, poorly dressed, obviously not cared for Harry.  
> So what did you think? Questions and comments are welcome. Feedback helps me improve and possative feedback incorrages me to right more.  
> Thanks for reading!


	3. The balance of The Force

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben teaches Harry the ways of The Force. Harry has many questions.

Chapter 3:

From that night on, Harry had a constant companion. Now it did not matter to him that his relatives were cruel to him, or that he had no friends at school or that the teachers didn't seem to care that he was obviously being mistreated. He now had Ben.  
Whenever Harry felt alone, he would instantly feel Ben's presence. Though he could not see his friend, he could still feel it when he was comforting him. It was as if he were being rapped in a cocoon of warmth, protecting him from all of his fears. Sometimes, Ben didn't even have to say a word. With Ben, he felt happy. With Ben, he did not feel so alone.  
However, Ben's presence did stir up some questions in his mind. How exactly could Harry sense Ben so strongly. And why did it seem as if he was the only one he could hear him?  
One night, Harry approached Ben with these questions.  
"Ben?" He asked.  
"Yes?"  
"Why... Why can I sense you, even when your not talking? I mean, I know your kind of like a ghost, but no one else seems to be able to feel you like I do." He asked hesitantly. He was nervous about asked questions, as his Aunt and Uncle did not like it when he asked questions.  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"The reason why you can sense me when other can't," He began. "Is because of your strong connection to The Force."  
"The Force?" Harry asked. "What's... What's The Force?"  
"The Force is an energy field, created by all living things." Ben replied. "It sounds us, it penetrates us and it binds us all together. Some have a very strong connection to The Force. This connection grants them powers unimaginable."  
Harry's eyes widened.  
"And I... I have a strong connection to The Force."  
"Yes." Ben replied. "You are very, very strong in The Force."  
Harry sat up on his thin mattress.  
"And you have a strong connection to The Force... Errr... At least you did, when you were alive I mean?"  
Harry could have sworn he heard Ben chuckle.  
"Yes, when I was alive, I was strong in The Force. And when I died, my spirit passed on into the realm of the Cosmic Force, from where I am currently communicating with you."  
Harry's brow furrowed.  
"What about my parents? Were they strong in The Force."  
"Yes." Ben replied.  
Harry frowned.  
"Then why did they die? I mean, if they had unimaginable power, then shouldn't they have been able to survive a car crash."  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"Your parents... Did not exactly die in a car crash."  
"What?" Harry asked, shocked. "What do you mean? But uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia said..."  
"And do you believe them?"  
Harry thought for a long time.  
"No." He finally said. "But then... How... How did my parents..."  
Harry could feel himself breaking down. Everything he thought he new was being put into question. He could feel fear, anger, hate, coursing through him.  
But then, as soon as the feeling came, it was replaced by the comforting presence of Ben.  
"Shhh, it was be alright Harry. The truth of how your parents died is a long, tragic story. You are too young to hear it now. However, be patient, for one day you will hear the truth."  
"P... Promise?" Harry said.  
"I promise." Ben replied.  
Harry calmed down.  
"So, is my connection to The Force the thing that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia keep calling my "Freakish Nature"?"  
"Yes, I'm afraid so." Ben replied.  
Harry frowned.  
"But The Force sounds so cool. How can something so cool be bad?"  
"Some people are just afraid of what they do not understand." Ben replied.  
They were both silent for a long time.  
"Ben?" Harry asked.  
"Yes?"  
"Can you teach me to use The Force?" He asked.  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"If you wish?"  
"Yes." Harry said, excited. "I want to learn how to use The Force so I can help the other kids at school to not get beaten up by Dudley and so I don't get so tired doing housework so I can do my homework and not get in trouble at school."  
Ben chuckled.  
"Calm down there. It will be hard work, and you will have to be patient."  
"Okay." Harry replied.  
"Well then," Ben said. "Will shall begin your training tomorrow. For now, you need your sleep."  
"Okay." Harry said, yawning. "Goodnight Ben."

Learning how to use The Force, was not what Harry had expected.  
He had expected to being learning how to harness energy and how to use incredible power like magic. However, Ben told him to sit on his mattress cross-legged, and focus.  
"Concentrate." Ben said. "Feel The Force within you."  
Harry breathed as Ben had instructed. At first, he did not feel anything. But, after a while, he began to feel something. Something inside of him. It was power. It was energy. It was The Force.  
It flowed through every part of him. It felt warm, strong, beautiful, alive.  
"I can feel it." Harry muttered. "The Force. It's... It's calling to me."  
"Good." Ben said. "Now, extend your vision outward. Feel The Force surrounding you."  
Harry did just that.  
He could feel The Force running through the house, the ground, ow air. He could feel it within his relatives upstairs, though nowhere near as strong as he had felt it within himself. He could feel it in the garden that Aunt Petunia made him tend everyday. He could feel it in the people next door and all down the street. He could feel it in the trees. He could feel it in the birds. The Force was everywhere, flowing through him, binding him to the rest of the world.  
He focused back into his small cupboard. He could see what appeared to be the figure of a man. His presence in The Force was different to the rest. It was as if he was part of The Force. Could this be Ben?  
Harry extended his mind to the figure.  
Suddenly, his vision changed.  
He could see blurred images. A sword made of glowing light, appearing jagged, unstable...  
A figure, dressed in black with a strange mask. The Force warring within him...  
Two figures, standing on a bridge above a large chasm. The jagged red sword activating, penetrating one of the figures...  
A girl, holding a blue glowing sword...  
A strange connection between the black figure and the girl...  
A room, full of dead bodies. The dark figure, unmasked to reveal a man. He is extended a hand to the girl, but she does not take x...  
Pain... So much pain...  
He could hear words both loud and quiet.  
"Ben...!"  
"I will finish, what you started..."  
"Murderous snake..."  
"My son is alive..."  
"There has been an awakening..."  
"Join me..."  
"Ben, don't do this..."  
"Please..."  
Harry snapped out of the vision. He collapsed onto his mattress.  
"Harry!" He could sense Ben's concern through The Force.  
"What... What was that." He breathed.  
Ben was silent.  
"Ghosts of the past."  
Harry frowned.  
"Who... Who was that... That man?"  
"His name, was Kylo Ren." Ben replied.  
"Kylo Ren?" Harry muttered. "He was... Strange."  
"How so?" Ben asked.  
Harry furrowed his eyebrows.  
"I could sense... Conflict, within him."  
Ben was silent for a few seconds.  
"Kylo Ren... Was torn... Between the dark and the light sides of The Force."  
Harry frowned.  
"The Force has sides?"  
"Yes." Ben replied. "In times of old, the Light Side was harnessed by the Jedi, and The Dark Side by the Sith."  
Harry's mind raced.  
"And what was Kylo Ren?"  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"He served The Dark Side of The Force, but was still tempted by The Light. This caused him to feel conflict within himself."  
"Did you know him?" Harry asked. "I mean, I was focusing on what I think was your Force presence when I saw the vision."  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"You could say... That he was like my dark twin."  
Harry was silent while he thought about this statement.  
"You mean he was your brother?"  
"Of sorts." Ben replied mysteriously.  
"What happened to him?" Harry asked.  
"He died."  
"How... How did he die?"  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"A girl, whom Ren attempted to turn to the Dark Side, destroyed him and saved me. Then, I saved her, at the cost of my own life."  
"Wow." Harry said, his eyes wide. Then he had a thought. "Was she the girl from the vision?"  
Ben was silent. Harry was getting tired of these long silences.  
"Her name was Rey." He finally said.  
"How did she defeat Kylo Ren?" Harry asked.  
"Love." Ben replied after yet another pause.  
"Love?" Harry asked, skeptically.  
"Yes, love." Ben replied. "It is truly a powerful thing."  
Suddenly, Harry yawned.  
"Now," Ben said. "I believe it is time for you to rest. You have really exerted your energy today."  
"Are we going to train again tomorrow?" Harry asked.  
"Yes, of course." Ben replied. "We must train everyday so you can become stronger."

As the months passed, Ben continued to teach Harry the ways of The Force.  
Harry learnt how to feel The Force in the world around him, and how to sense people's emotions. Ben told him of the many ways of manipulating The Force, such as levitating objects and enhancing his own attributes.  
Harry learnt how to make himself faster, stronger, and more agile with The Force. He also found that he could learn much easier with The Force.  
However, Harry was particularly interested in, what been called, a Jedi mind-trick.  
"So I can get anyone to do what I want?" Harry had asked on one February night after his relatives had gone to bed.  
"Anyone who is weak-minded, yes." Ben replied. "However, you must use this wisely, and not for ill intent."  
"Why do you mean?" Harry asked.  
"Well," Ben began. "Say there was someone who was standing on the edge of a cliff. Now, this person desired to jump off of it."  
"But, that would hurt." Harry said, shocked that anyone would do such a thing.  
"Yes, it would hurt very much." Ben agreed. "Now, with the Jedi mind-trick, you could convince this person that they do not wish to jump off of the cliff."  
Harry nodded.  
"Okay, that sounds right." He said.  
"However," Ben continued. "You could just as easily convince a person who doesn't want to jump off of the cliff, that they really want to."  
Harry's eyes widened.  
"Why would anyone want to do that?" He asked. "Well, maybe Dudley, as a joke or something."  
"As you can see," Ben continued. "With great power comes great responsibility. You must learn to use the powers granted to you by The Force wisely."  
Harry nodded.  
"I will."

Throughout his training, Ben also told Harry the history of the galaxy. Harry learnt about the Jedi, the Sith, the old republic, the empire and the From Order. He was fascinated by all of this. Though, there was just one question which lurked in the back of his mind.  
Eventually, on one June afternoon when his Aunt and Uncle had taken Dudley out to an amusement park, leaving Harry looked in his cupboard with nothing more than a dry loaf of bread and a bottle of water, Harry asked the question that he had been dying to ask Ben for months.  
"Ben?" He asked hesitantly.  
"Yes?"  
Harry pursed his lips.  
"When you first told me about The Force, you said that it's supposed to bind us together."  
"Yes, it does."  
"Well, and then you said that there is a Light Side and a Dark Side."  
"Yes."  
"And that the Jedi used the Light Side and the Sith used the Dark."  
Yes. What is your point?"  
"Well," Harry began nervously. "How can there be a Light and a Dark, and yet, The Force still being able to bind everything together?"  
Ben was silent for a long time. Harry pressed the issue on.  
"And well, from what you told me the Jedi used their power seemingly for good, while the Sith used their power for bad. But, you have mentioned cases where the Jedi have done some morally questionable things, and where the Sith were trying to do good. I mean, didn't Anakin Skywalker turn to the Dark Side because he wanted to save his Wife from dying?"  
"You make a fear point." Ben conceded.  
"And anyway," Harry continued. "Anakin wouldn't have been tempted to the Dark Side so easily by Palpatine if the Jedi weren't so strict on no attachments. And that's something else I don't understand. How is loving someone bad?"  
"Sometimes love can cloud your judgement." Ben argued.  
"I know that." Harry replied. "But it can also make a person better. And I don't see how fear can be as bad as the Jedi said. I mean, fear can lead to people making bad decisions. But it can also stop them from being reckless."  
"That is... A very good observation." Ben said, a note of surprise in his voice.  
Harry felt overjoyed. It was very rarely that anyone ever praised him for accomplishing something. This encouraged him to continue.  
"And as you said before, you can use a mind trick to harm someone just as easily as you can to help them. I think you can probably do the same with a lot of Force powers."  
"That is true." Ben agreed.  
"I know that this might sound silly, but... But I think it has less to do with what aspect of The Force you use, and more of how you use The Force. I mean, yes the Dark Side is fueled by more negative and chaotic emotions. But how does that make them necessary bad?"  
Harry took a deep breath.  
"And... I remember you telling me about Kylo Ren. About how he served the dark but was tempted by the light, and this caused him to fill torn. What if... What if he felt this way because he was trying to be one or the other? What if it were possible to be both?"  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"You make... Some interesting arguments. Perhaps... Perhaps you are correct. I shall have to look further into this."  
Harry beamed.  
"Thank you."  
"Now," Ben continued. "Onto today's training."

Ben Solo was honestly astounded. He had sensed how strong Harry was in The Force. He was truly powerful, just as his parents had been. However, he had not expected him to be this powerful.  
He remembered the first time Harry had meditated. He had so much raw, untapped power. So much potential in The Force. He not expected Harry to be able to be able to tap into the Living Force as easily as he had. And yet he had been able to sense The Force flowing through the entire street. More than that, he had been able to sense Ben himself. This had been shocking enough. However, he had then touched Ben through The Force.  
And then he had had a vision of Ben's past.  
Ben was thankful that Harry had not seen a clear vision of his history. Ben did not wish to scare his son off with his history. Ben could sense that now was not the time for Harry to know the truth of his family history. But at the same time, he could tell that Harry would be able to tell that he was being lied to. His strength in The Force was too powerful.  
So Ben had told him a half truth.  
It was not hard, as Ben thought of Kylo Ren as a separate entity from himself. He truly felt that this aspect of him had died on the wreckage of the second Death Star. So he had referred to his past self as a dark twin. He had been amazed that Harry believed the tail. However, Ben supposed he should not underestimate the power of a child's innocence.  
Not that his child had been given much of a chance to be innocent.  
Ben could only watch in regret and anger as his son was mistreated by those who he was forced to call family. He new that if he had still been Kylo Ren, then he would have single handedly destroyed the entire street a long time ago. However, he was no longer that monster. Nor could he do more than teach his son the skills required for him to help himself. Ben could only hope that this was enough.  
Over the months of Harry's training, Ben had been surprised time and again by Harry shear power. He was truly gifted within The Force.  
More than that, he had a truly kind heart. Despite him not receiving an affection himself, he cared for the wellbeing of others. And for the rare people who showed him kindness, he returned with unwavering loyalty.  
Ben had seen this when the boy Harry was forced to call cousin had, yet again, broken Harry's glasses. Yet again, Harry had been forced to tape his glasses back together. Ben had suggested that he use a Jedi mind-trick on the Dursleys, to get them to buy him a new pair. Harry had refused, but not for the reasons that Ben had feared. Ben had suspected that Harry would refuse, as he would see this as manipulating and immoral. However, this was not the reason why he refused to use a mind-trick on the Dursleys for new glasses.  
"No Ben. I don't want new glasses." Harry had said firmly.  
"Why?" Ben had asked.  
"Because, Miss Bennet gave these to me, and I want something to remember her by." Harry had replied.  
It warmed Ben's heart to see how kind and loyal his son was, when the world had denied him so much needed love and affection.  
However, was latest display of Harry's intelligence and kindness had shocked Ben to the core. For Harry, who was a month away from being 6 years old, had made an analysis of The Force worthy of Jedi Masters.  
Unlike countless Jedi and Sith, Harry did not see the Light Side and the Dark Side. He saw just The Force as a whole. More than that, he, while acknowledging that there were different aspects of The Force, also stated that this did not necessary make either aspect good or evil, but that it depended on the intention of the user.  
Ben was immeasurably proud of his son's show of intelligence. However, he still needed to discus this with someone. Someone who could understand this matter better.  
So, he reached through the Cosmic Force to find the one who sort. In a matter of seconds, his grandfather materialised in front of him. Ben was surprised to see a small smile on his face.  
"Grandfather," He began. "I need advice. Harry and I have just had quiet an interesting conversation..."  
"Yes," Anakin said. "He is quite an intelligent child, isn't he?"  
"So you heard what he said?" Ben asked.  
Anakin just nodded.  
"And? Is there any truth in his words?"  
Anakin looked at him for a long time. Finally, he spoke.  
"Long ago, the Jedi believed that I was destined to bring balance to The Force."  
"Yes, I am aware of this." Ben said, beginning to become annoyed. "And since then it's been the duty of the Skywalker bloodline to maintain this balance. I do not see what this has to do with..."  
"Do you remember what Harry said about Kylo Ren?"  
Ben blinked.  
"He said that he believed Kylo Ren was torn between the Dark and the Light because he was trying to be one and not the other, and that... That he could have ended his pain if he tried to... To be both. But I do not see..."  
Anakin shook his head.  
"You will be surprised how amazing the mind of a child is. Sometimes, they can see what others cannot."  
Ben scowled.  
"I do not understand."  
Anakin shook his head again.  
"You are of the Skywalker bloodline, my bloodline. The Force runs strong in our family Ben. Not just the Light, and not just the Dark. Just, The Force, as a whole entity. For your whole life, you were tempted by the dark..."  
"That was Palpatine." Ben argued.  
Anakin shook his head.  
"Palpatine may have amplified the temptation. However, the Dark Side would have called to you regardless of his influence. And once you began to serve the Dark Side and became Kylo Ren, you were drawn to the Light Side. Do you not see? When you served one side, the other side called to you. This is because you were meant to serve The Force as a whole, and not just one part of it."  
Ben frowned.  
"And what does this have to do with Harry?"  
"This has everything to do with Harry." Anakin replied. "He is the last of the Skywalker bloodline. However, he is the first Skywalker who is not influenced by either the Jedi or the Sith. This will greatly help him. He will not be restricted by either order, and will learn to use The Force in it's entirety. However, he is in need of a teacher. And you are that teacher."  
Ben frowned in confusion.  
"Why me? Why not you?"  
Anakin shook his head.  
"It has to be you Ben. The Force has much planned for you still. However, all you can do now is teach Harry and ensure he is able to reach his full potential."  
Anakin looked at him seriously.  
"And when he reaches his full potential, he shall finish what we started."


	4. Controlling the Dark Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry receives his Hogwarts letter, gets into an arguement with the Dursleys, and... Let's just say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Chapter 4:

Over the next few years, Ben taught Harry everything he new about The Force. And when he said everything, he meant everything.  
He was at first hesitant to teach Harry some of what he had learnt as his time as Kylo Ren. He did not wish for Harry to go down the same path he did. He feared that if Harry was introduced to even the smallest amount of the Dark Side, then the child will fall just as he did. The Dark Side of The Force, if not handled properly, could have terrible consequences. Ben was afraid that, due to his living conditions, Harry would find it harder to balance the light and the dark within himself.  
However, Harry both wanted and needed to learn all aspects of The Force, both light and dark. And Ben was surprised, once again, with his son's talent.  
Not only was he capable of wielding the Dark Side, but he was also capable for controlling it, instead of it controlling him. Yes, at times when the Dursleys were particularly cruel to him, Ben could sense the Dark Side taking hold of him, but Harry soon learnt to control his emotions and not let the darker aspects of himself control his actions. When Harry had first started training, he found was difficult. However, as Harry's training progressed, so did his self control.  
It was truly incredible. Ben could not help but be proud of the child he had helped create. And he knew that, if Rey could see him now, she would also be proud of their child.  
From time to time, Ben went to check on Rey.  
She never stayed in one place for too long, travelling from system to system. On her adventures, she had found and gathered quite a number of Force sensitives. Some of them were already adults, like the former storm-trooper whom Rey called her friend. Both he and Rey had been surprised when the man had revealed that he to, was strong in The Force. It was nowhere near either his or Rey's power, but it was still enough.  
However, the vast majority of those Rey found were children.  
At first, Rey feared that she would have to wait until the children were adults, so that they were not separated from their families as the Younglings of old were.   
She had briefly thought about establishing a proper base on one system and allowing the students to visit their homes whenever they were not preoccupied with training. However, Rey knew that there were most likely Force sensitives on every system. If she were to establish a permanent base for the new order, then only the inhabitance of the system would be able to see their families on a regular basis and the ones who's families lived furthest from the system would hardly be able to see their families.  
Finally, she was able to figure out a solution.  
She and her students would continue to travel from system to system, and she will allow them to communicate with their families whenever they wished, as long as it did not interfere with their training. This way, they could still have some form of a relationship with the people they loved, while still focusing on their Force training. And no one student would have easier access to their families than the rest.  
In only a few years, Rey's moving academy had become so large that she had had to find a bigger ship. She had ended up having to repurposed and redecorate an old Star Destroyer. At first, she was hesitant to use something that used to belong to the First Order. However, she quickly realised that this was the best option.  
However, she did not wish to completely discard the Millennium Falcon. Ben remembered that Han Solo had been the first person Rey had ever seen as a Father figure. He knew that it would be hard for her to just abandon the old ship.  
Ben also did not wish to see the Falcon go. Despite him once wanting it to be completely blown out of the sky, the ship held great sentimental value for him. He remembered playing on it when he was a child, even younger than Harry was now. This was where his Father had first taught him how to fly a ship. It was part of his families legacy. He remembered his Father sitting in the pilot seat and picking him up to sit in his lap.  
"So, how do you like it?" Han had asked.  
"It's amazing?" Young Ben had replied, eyes wide.  
Han had chuckled.  
"Yes, did I ever tell you that I completed the Kessel Run..."  
"In twelve parsecs." Ben had replied. Han had been very found of that particular story.  
Han had laughed again.  
"Yeah, me and Chewy have had some pretty great adventures in this old thing." He had said, patting the ship affectionately.  
"One day, I might take you on a few adventures of your own."  
"Really?"  
"Really." Han had replied, ruffling his hair. "And some day, you will take your kids on adventures..."  
That was when Ben came up with a solution.  
One night, he whispered a suggestion to Rey in her sleep. The next day, she had left her students under the careful watch of the former storm-trooper, whom Ben finally discovered preferred the name Finn, and had taken the Millennium Falcon on the last flight the ship would be seeing for the next several years. She had also taken Luke Skywalker's old X-wing. However, she had R2 control it as she flew the Falcon.  
Through The Force, Ben had told her where to land the Falcon, and use The Force to hide it from all but whom she intended to find it. Once that was finished, Rey did not hesitate to go into the X-wing and fly away from the system. Ben supposed that she did not wish to stay, as she did not believe she could fight the urge to check on the child she had left behind.  
The Millennium Falcon was now hidden in a forest, a few miles out of surrey.  
Eight year old Harry had been amazed when Ben had first led him to it. The boy now had plenty of free time on his hands. Soon after learning how to manipulate The Force in more physical ways, Harry did not hesitate in using his new power by completing the extraordinarily long list of chores given to him by the Dursleys. His relatives did not bother him, as long as he did not do what they deemed to be "freakish", around them. This meant that, once Harry's chores were done, he was free to sneak away and do more Force training.  
"Wow, this is so call." Harry had said.  
Ben chuckled.  
"Yes, it is quite a ship."  
"Does it have a name?" Harry asked.  
Ben hesitated for a few seconds. Finally, he decided that it was best not to lie to Harry.  
"This, is the Millennium Falcon."  
Harry's jaw dropped.  
"The Millennium Falcon? You mean like, THE Millennium Falcon?"  
"Yes."  
"But... But this is the ship that helped Luke Skywalker blow up the first Death Star and the ship that did the Kessel run in Fourteen parsecs..."  
"Twelve." Ben corrected.  
"But how did it get here?" Harry asked.  
Again, Ben hesitated.  
"That is a long story, for another time. First, like in the storage compartment."  
Harry frowned but complied. The frown quickly left, however, when he opened the compartment and saw what was inside.  
"No way." He said, his eyes wide.  
In his hand, he held the hilt of a training sabre. In the other, he held an old Jedi training orb.  
"Yes." Ben replied. "While you are far exceeding my expectations in your Force training, you still have much to learn when it comes to using the more physical weapon of a Jedi."  
"Thank you!" Harry had said. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"  
Ben had laughed. "You're welcome."  
Harry smiled. Then, a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.  
"Ben?"  
"Yes?"  
"Can I live hear now?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"Well," Harry should sheepishly. "I mean... I really, really don't like living with the Dursleys. I think that it would be better for my Force training and my sanity if I ran away. It's not liked they cared and you could teach me how to fly this thing and we can go on adventures around the galaxy and help people..."  
"No Harry." Ben had replied. "I do not believe that that would be a good idea."  
"Why not?" Harry had asked.  
Ben had really not wanted to say this. However, harry had to know why, for the mean time, he had to stay with the Dursleys.  
"Do you remember what happened after your first week of school?"  
Harry frowned.  
"Yeah. At first, everyone seemed to defend me and tell Dudley off for his bad behaviour and the principal was going to send Child Services after Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. And I still had Miss Bennet to help me and she was really, really nice and she promised me that she would help me get away from the people who hurt me."  
"And, what happened?"  
"And..." Harry thought, trying to keep hold of his sadness. "And then everyone just ignored Dudley's bad behaviour and no one from Child Services came to check on the situation with the Dursleys and... And Miss Bennet disappeared."  
He could sense that Harry was about to cry, so he did what he always did whenever his son was upset. He rapped in intangible arms around him, in a makeshift embrace. Though Harry could not feel him, Ben knew that he could sense him and that the embrace always brought the young boy comfort. Though Ben wish to be able to do more, he knew that this would have to do.  
"Shhh shhh shhhh." He hushed.  
"And... And you said that she was compelled away." Harry said, his voice barely above a whisper.  
"Yes." Ben replied. "There are certain people... Who wish for you to remain with the Dursleys."  
"Why?" Harry asked.  
"Because they believe it is the safest place for you." Ben replied bitterly.  
Harry laughed.  
"Safe... At the Dursleys?" He asked, gasping.  
Ben sighed.  
"Do not worry. Everything will be clear in a few years. All you have to do is..."  
"Yeah yeah, be passant." Harry replied.  
"I am sorry, Harry. I will I could tell you more, however, The Force is preventing me from doing so."  
Harry sighed.

"I understand."  
"Now," Ben said, trying to change the subject. "Let us begin your first Lightsabre lesson."  
Harry face immediately lightened. Ben had chuckled and rolled his eyes. No matter what the situation, the prospect of playing with a glowing laser sword seemed to almost always cheer up a child.

Harry got up as he usually did every morning just before the sun rose to get in his morning jog before making the Dursleys' breakfast.  
Ben instructed him to run every morning to improve his stamina and physical health. He had told him that this would greatly help him in combat situations. So Harry had agreed.  
He used The Force to unlock the front door, then relock it once he was out. Then, he ran around the block a few times, before returning to the house and making breakfast as he did every morning.  
It was now the school holidays, which meant that, after he was done with his chores, he would have the rest of the entire day to train.  
Harry was extremely fascinated by lightsabres. Ever since Ben had first shown him to the Millennium Falcon, where he had found old Jedi training equipment, he had been curious about everything concerning lightsabres.  
He had asked Ben countless questions about them, and his ghost teacher had taught him much about them. He told Harry of the many colours, from the more common ones of Blue and Green, to the very rare ones of purple and white, to how the Sith would corrupt their Kyber crystals by causing them to bleed, resulting in the red colour.  
Ben also taught him of the many different variations in design, and the people whom wielded them. From Darth Mall, with his double-bladed saberstaff, to the twin lightsabres used by Ahsoka Tano. However, the design which most struck his interest was the crossguard lightsaber, wielded by Kylo Ren. He did not know why it fascinated him so. Maybe it was because, in the few visions Ben showed him of it, the blade looked so wield, jagged, unstable, much as he had heard Kylo Ren had been. Maybe it was because he believed that the extra crossguard blades would provide some extra protection during a lightsaber fight. In any case, Harry was obsessed with this particular design of Lightsabre.  
He had once, very hesitantly, asked why the crossguard blades had looked so jaggard. Ben had told him that it was because the crystal was broken. Harry had replied by asking why the crystal was cracked. Ben had replied by saying that maybe it was because Kylo Ren's own emotions were so unstable that the crystal could not handle it. Harry had let the subject drop, as he knew that anything to do with Kylo Ren was a saw subject with Ben.  
Back to the present. Harry had just finished breakfast, in time for the Dursleys to enter the kitchen and plant their lazy behinds at the kitchen table. Harry gave them their breakfast before sitting down with his meager portion of food.  
Throughout the meal, Dudley was constantly poking him with his blasted smelting snick. Harry had to resist the urge to use The Force to rip the stick right out of Dudley's hand and hit the frighteningly over wait boy over the head with it. However, Harry knew that this would not be a good idea. So he simply tried his hardest to ignore him and finish his breakfast.  
Near the end of the meal, the door-bell rang and Harry could sense the postman drop some letters through the mail flap. Evidently, the Dursleys heard that it was the postman.  
"Go get the mail Dudley." Uncle Vernon said from behind his newspaper.  
"Make Harry get it." Dudley replied.  
"Go get the mail Harry."  
Harry resisted the urge to tell the large man that if he wanted the mail so badly, then he could go get it himself. He simply got up from his chair, accepting that Dudley would most likely take what was left of his food, and walked to the front door.  
When he picked up the mail, he could sense that one of them was different from the others. After flicking through them, he found what was so strange.  
A letter addressed to him.  
That wasn't the strangest thing. It was written on what Harry believed to be parchment. On the back of it was a strange crest. And on the address, the letter described everything about his living conditions, including his cupboard. However, the strangest part was that Harry could sense The Force surrounding this letter.  
Harry shook his head and hid the letter in his overly large shirt, planning to open it in the privacy of his cupboard.

Once he had finally finished his chores for the day, he sat in his cupboard, reading the letter from the light which fell through the slits of the door. He could sense Ben's presence near him.  
"What do you think it is Ben?" He asked.  
"The only way you will be able to find out is by opening it." Ben replied.  
And so Harry did.  
The contents of the letter was shocking, to say the least. A school for wizards? Wizards? Was that what The Force users of this world called themselves? And there were enough of them to warrant a school?  
As he looked over the letter again, he thought that this was rather strange. There was nothing to explain what Hogwarts was, or anything about wizards in general. Surely they would have more information about the school, besides what the student needed. The Force could quite as easily come to someone who had no Force sensitive parents than someone from a Force sensitive family. However, this letter seemed to assume he knew everything about the school and the society.  
Then he remembered. Ben had told him that both his parents had been strong in The Force. Meaning that his Mother was strong in The Force. Meaning that she would have quite possibly gone to this school. But, this would mean...  
"Ben," He said, attempting to stay calm. "Do... Do the Dursleys know anything about this... This Hogwarts?"  
"Yes." Ben replied. "Petunia knew perfectly well about your Mother's power, as well as the truth of her's and your Father's deaths."  
Harry's hands shook, as did the contents of the cupboard. He took a deep breath.  
"I.. Have been aware that they have been keeping secrets from me for years. But this...?"  
He waved the letter around.  
"To hide the truth of my heritage? No. I have had enough. Why did they...? Why would they...?"  
Ben sighed.  
"Because they feared you and your power." Ben replied. "They feared what you would do if you knew of your power, and so they hid the truth from you."  
Harry clenched his fists.  
"I understand why you kept it from me." He said. "The Force did not wish you to. And it is not a wise idea to ignore the wishes for The Force."  
"That, and," Ben replied. "I believed that the information would be to much for you while you were so young."  
Harry nodded.  
"Yes, you were not thinking of yourself. You did this for my benefit, and while I am a little mad that you keep secrets from me, I understand your reasoning. But this... The dursleys have selfishly kept stuff from me for too long."  
"Harry." Ben said, startled as Harry suddenly got up from his thin mattress. "What are you doing?"  
"I'm going to teach the Dursleys that keeping secrets his not a good idea." Harry replied. "And I'm also going to get some answers."  
"Harry." Ben said in a warning tone. "Don't..."  
"Don't worry, Ben." Harry replied. "I'm not going to go all Palpatine on them."  
Before Ben could reply, Harry had already left his cupboard.  
He walked into the living room, where the Dursleys sat, stuffing their faces and watching the TV. Harry walked straight in front of the screen, blocking the view of whatever show they were watching.  
"Hey, get out of the way!" Dudley yelled.  
Harry smirked.  
"Make me." He said.  
The fat both instantly got up and waddled to him, preparing to hit him with his smeltings stick. However, before Dudley reached him, Harry stopped the larger boy with The Force. Dudley's eyes were now wide, only a foot or two away from Harry. Harry lifted his hand, preparing to do a trick that he had practiced on random people around the streets for years.  
"You don't want to hit me with your Smeltings Stick." Harry said, waving his hand in front of Dudley's face.  
"I don't want to hit you with my Smeltings Stick." Dudley repeated, dropping his stick.  
"You want to go to your room and rethink your life."  
"I want to go to my room and rethink my life."  
"Then go."  
Dudley turned around and walked straight to his room. Uncle vernon's face immediately went a bright shade of purple and Aunt Petunia screamed at him loudly.  
"What did you do to my Duddykins!"  
"Why you little... You dear use your freakishness against my son!"  
Harry lifted his hand again and used The Force to silence his relatives.  
"Don't worry, I probably did him a favour. Who knows, maybe he'll be a better person after he sits down and thinks. And anyway, I didn't want him present for things."  
"What... What are you doing!" Aunt Petunia screeched.  
Harry replied by pulling out his letter.  
"Dear Mr. Potter. You have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."  
He could sense the fear increasing in his relatives. Harry smirked.  
"Shall I continue?"  
"You... You..." Uncle Vernon stuttered, his face flickering from white, to red, to purple, and back to white again. Harry was momentarily concerned for the man's health. And then he remembered the years of torment he had suffered at his hands.  
"Now, I have some questions. For starters, did you, or did you not know about this?"  
"Knew! Of course we knew!" Aunt Petunia screeched.  
Harry could sense the anger building inside of her. Evidently, she had been holding this back for years.  
"How could I not know, with my dratted sister being what she was? Oh, she got a letter just like that and disappeared off to that... That school... And came home every holiday with her pockets full of frog-spawn, turning teacups into rats. I was the only one who saw her for what she was... a freak! But for my mother and father, oh no, it was Lily this and Lily that, they were proud of having a witch in the family!"  
Harry was beginning to sense the anger and jealousy radiating from Aunt Petunia.  
"Then she met that Potter at school and they left and got married and had you, and of course I knew you'd be just the same, just as strange, just as... As... Abnormal... And then, if you please, she went and got herself blown up and we got landed with you!"  
Harry could feel his own anger rising. He of course knew that the old story about his parents dying in a car crash was a complete lie, Ben had told him so years ago. However, it was still maddening to hear Aunt Petunia talk about his Mother's deaths in such a callus way.  
"Blown up!" He found himself yelling. "You told me that they died in a car crash."  
"Oh, as if something as normal as a car crash could kill freaks like that." Uncle Vernon scoffed. "No, they lived like freaks and they had to go and die like freaks too."  
"Oh, then how did they die?" Harry retorted.  
Much to Harry's aggravation, Uncle Vernon shrugged.  
"Don't know, don't care. All we know is that they got what they deserved, messing around with such freaks. They were useless weardoes that got what was coming to them..."  
Harry suddenly extended his hand, is anger hitting him in waves. Using The Force, he picked Uncle Vernon up by the throat. Hanging a few feet up from the floor, Uncle Vernon sputtered and ganged as Harry chocked him. Aunt Petunia was screaming.  
"Stop it! Put him down! Put him down!"  
Harry glared up at Uncle Vernon.  
"Never... Insult... My parents... Again!"  
He dropped Uncle Vernon to the floor. The man landed with a heavy FUD, but quickly recovered and sat up to spit in Harry's direction.  
"Why you little, ungrateful freak!" He yelled. "After all that we have done for you. We took you in from the kindness of our hearts, fed you, clothed you, and this is how you repay us! I should have dumped you in the nearest rubbish bin. Then the world would be free for you, just as it is of your freakish parents!"  
Harry's anger had reached it's boiling point. He used The Force to summon Dudley's Smeltings Stick into his hand. Then, using The Force to enhance his strength, he proceded to take his anger out on the TV. He whacked at it, again and again, until it was nothing more than a pile of plastic and sparking electronics.  
He turned to see that both Dursleys were steering at him, wide eyes full of fear.  
"That," He said, panting. "Was for insulting my parents just after I told you not to."  
He dropped the stick, which rolled along the ground.  
"Now, some things are going to be changing around here. For starters, I have had enough of my cupboard. So, I will be moving to Dudley's second bedroom, understand?"  
Both Dursleys nodded.  
"Good," Harry continued. "Nice of us to have this chat."  
And with that, Harry left the room, the wreckage of the TV still smoking.

Harry quickly moved his meagre belongings into what used to be Dudley's second bedroom. Thankfully, it seemed that Dudley was still actually thinking about his life. Harry hoped that the results of his Jedi mind-trick will help in improving Dudley's behaviour. While his cousin had been cruel to him and many others, Harry knew that the majority of his behavioural problems stemmed from a lack of discipline at home. Dudley was given what he wanted, whenever he wanted it.  
Once Harry was finished moving his things into his new bedroom, he sat on the old bed and curled into a fetal position.  
How could he have let himself lose control like that? He had just felt so angry... And the fact that they kept insulting his parents didn't help much. But still...  
Instantly, he felt the familiar comforting presence of Ben.  
"Shhh, it's okay Harry."  
"B... Ben." He stuttered. "I... I'm sorry. I... I let the darkness control me..."  
"Shhh shhhh." Ben hushed. "It was not your fault. They provoked you. It's a wander you didn't choke that oaf to death."  
Harry sobbed again.  
"B... But I wanted to. Ben, I could feel it in the back of my mind. I wanted to... To hurt them so badly."  
"But you didn't." Ben replied.  
"No." Harry agreed. "But I didn't have to destroy the TV. I can't believe that... That I through a temper tantrum like that. I... I was worse than Dudley."  
He could hear Ben chuckling.  
"Oh, you should have seen the tantrums thrown by Kylo Ren."  
Harry blinked.  
"Kylo Ren threw temper tantrums."  
Ben chuckled again.  
"Oh, did he ever. When he got angry, he would pull out his lightsaber and destroy whatever was closest. Every peace of equipment would be in fragments and every storm troop would be absolutely terrified."  
Harry chuckled at the thought of the big bad dark figure that he had seen from that one time he had touched Ben's Force presence throwing a temper tantrum.  
"There, do you feel better?" Ben asked.  
"A... A little." Harry replied.  
He sat back and pulled out the letter again.  
"So what do you think Ben? Should I go to this Hogwarts?"  
Ben was silent for a few seconds.  
"It is up to you." Ben finally answered. "What do you want to do?"  
"Well," Harry began. "I would like to go. I mean, my parents did go there, and I think they would want me to. And I think it would be both interesting and useful to learn how the Force users of this world harness their power. And plus, it means that I'll be able to get away from the Dursleys. And who knows, maybe I'll be able to find people to teach what I've learnt from you. If that's okay?"  
"Yes, I welcome you to spread your knowledge." Ben replied, chuckling. "As long as you be careful with whom you choose to pass on your knowledge to."  
"I will." Harry replied. "But first, I'm going to need to write a response to this letter."  
He immediately went to his old school bag, where he kept a pen and some loose paper. For the next hour, he thought about what to write. Finally, after many drafts, he had something that he hoped was good enough.  
"Ben," Harry began. "What do you think of this?"  
Harry began to read his letter.

To Professor McGonagall,  
I am honored to be accepted at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I look forward to attending this year.  
However, I am afraid that I do not know much concerning Hogwarts or anything to do with magic in general. So I ask if it is possible for you to send me a letter, if not a representative of the school, to assist in providing me with the knowledge I lack.  
Yours sincerely,  
Harry Potter.

He waited for Ben to reply.  
"That sounded good." Ben finally said.  
Harry smiled.  
"Great, now all we need to do is find a way of sending it."  
As if on cue, Harry heard a tapping on the window and he could sense something out the window. He got of from where he had been sitting at the desk to open it. Much to Harry's surprise, an owl swooped in and landed on the desk, it's leg held out, it if waiting for something.  
"Errr..." Harry said, unsure.  
"I believe that this is a form of... Communication?" Ben theorised.  
Harry shrugged.  
"Well, when in Rome." He said as he grabbed a peace of string, rolled up his letter, and tied it to the leg of the owl. It immediately ruffled it's feathers and flew straight out of the window.  
Harry let out a breath that he had not known he had been holding.  
"Well, that's that." He said. "All we can do is wait."


	5. New discoveries for all

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry learns about what really happened to his parents. McGonagall learns that maybe Dumbledore shouldn't be put in charge of where orphans go. Dumbledore and Ben learn to not anger a Scottish woman.

Chapter 5:

Throughout his time of watching Harry grow, Ben had felt many emotions. Happiness, pride, anger towards those who tormented the child, regret, and a overwhelming amount of love were a few.  
However, he had never felt absolute terror.  
He had watched as Harry had become angered by the realisation that his relatives had been keeping crucial information concerning his past, a secret from him for his entire life.  
Ben had been afraid that he would become angered towards himself. He wouldn't blame him. After all, Ben had out-right told him that he knew more than he was letting on, but couldn't say anything because The Force was preventing him. However, Harry was not angry at him. He was understanding of his reasoning.  
No, all of his anger was directed towards the people who had tormented him for almost ten years.  
Ben was relieved when Harry had used a Jedi mind-trick to get the young boy Dudley out of the room. That boy was almost as much of a victim of his parents' attitude and behaviour as Harry was. Ben could sense that he was on a path leading to a truly horrible future. However, with Harry's intervention and mercy, his path more have been altered for the better. Ben was extremely proud of his Son's decision to show mercy towards the boy who had bullied him for so long.  
However, he was absolutely horrified when Harry's interrogation of the Dursleys began.  
With every second that passed, he could sense the anger building inside of his son. Within only a few minutes, in was poring off of him in waves. Ben had not felt such anger since... Well, himself.  
Once the Dursleys began insulting Harry's adopted parents, Ben knew that Harry would not be able to hold back the darkness any longer. Ben knew by now that Harry was more protective over the people he loved, and more likely to react to an insult directed towards them than he was an insult directed towards himself. So Ben was not surprised when Harry reacted so drastically.  
However, he was still horrified when he saw the young boy, only a week away from being Eleven, lift a fully grown man in the air with a powerful Force choke. Ben knew this to be a favourite method of torture and execution by Darth Vader. Ben thought that it must have been horrifying to see such an action done by such a monstrosity. However, he thought that it was even more terrifying to see a mere child do the same action.  
However, this was nothing compared to the inordinate amount of terror that he had felt upon seeing Harry's next reaction to an insult directed towards the Potters.  
If Ben was alive, he knew that his heart would have stopped beating and his blood would have run cold. He could not find the words to describe how he felt upon seeing his son, who was normally so balanced, who was so kind, even to those who had tormented him, commit an action that Kylo Ren had been infamous for.  
At the time, he knew that constantly throwing temper tantrums was childish. However, he had been so full of anger, that he needed some sort of outlet to take out his rage. He did not wish to anger Snoke by constantly killing the soldiers of The First Order. Hence, he took his anger out on the equipment.  
The only good part about his tantrums were that it gave him quite a reputation among the storm-troopers. They soon knew not to anger the commander of the Knights of Ren.  
However, upon seeing Harry commit the same action, he was filled with absolute terror, the likes for which he had not felt since he had sensed Rey briefly die after defeating Palpatine.  
Once Harry had moved his meager belongings into the room that he had just claimed while the Dursley were still in shock, he had sat upon the old warn bed and sob. Ben could sense the regret and the horror at what he had done poring off of his child. So he had done as he had always done, and rapped the boy in the closest thing Ben could manage to a hug. He had comforted him the best he could. However, he himself was still dealing with his own emotions.  
Ben had been told, many times, that Harry was capable of harnessing both sides of The Force, and keeping the balance within himself. However, just because he was more capable of being balanced than the average Force user, it did not mean that it was easy.  
Ben knew from personal experience, that it was easy to let the more chaotic aspects of The Force control you. That was why many found it difficult to remain completely balanced.  
However, he was proud at the restraint that Harry showed, even if the boy did not know it. Harry could have easily blown up the house and killed the Dursleys in his anger. The Force knew that those monsters deserved it after so long.  
However, without even knowing it, Harry had shown restraint and had spared his tormentors. This was truly something to be proud of.  
He was still not sure if it was the wisest decision to allow Harry to go to Hogwarts. There were many there whom he did not trust with the safety of his son.  
However, in the end it was Harry's decision. And anyway, both he and Harry were curios about the Force Users of this world. They had both sensed that The Force flowed differently here. However, they had not had the opportunity to explore more. This would give them this opportunity to learn more concerning the people whom called themselves witches and wizards.  
For the most part, Ben's focus had been on Harry and keeping his son as safe as he could, given the circumstances. However, he had managed a few glimpses into the wizarding world, primarily focused around the old wizard whom he remembered was called Dumbledore.  
Ben really, really, did not like the man. Not only did he just abandon his fifteen month old son on a cold doorstep without even knocking on the door, but he had truly devious plans revolving around Harry, which were worthy of Palpatine himself.  
Dumbledore suspected that the dark wizard Voldemort was still alive, and that for some reason Harry was the only one capable of defeating him. So, Dumbledore decided that it would be best to train Harry to become the ultimate weapon, willing to do what was necessary for what the old man perceived as the greater good.  
It had been him who altered the memories and behaviour of the teachers at Harry's school, and who had compelled Miss Bennet to go far away.  
The old man believed that, due to Lily Potter's sacrifice, Harry was protected by their "Shared blood". Therefore, he came to the conclusion that Harry would be safest with the only remaining blood relative of Lily Potter, Petunia Dursley.  
Ben could not help the bitter laugh that escaped him at the thought.  
Harry was not even related to Lily Potter by blood. So any protection from the shared blood between the two sisters was non-existent. Not that Dumbledore knew this. The Potters had been very secretive when it came to their Son's true origin.  
Now, Ben feared that Dumbledore would try to further manipulate his son. So he followed the owl as it flew back to Hogwarts. Once it reached the old castle, Ben used The Force to ensure the letter reached a more desirable target than Dumbledore.  
Ben remembered that night, when his son had been left at the Dursleys. He remembered that there was one, a rather stern looking witch, who had protested at the idea of leaving Harry there. Ben had observed her from time to time, and knew that she had a good heart and a firm mind-set.  
So Ben directed the owl to professor Minerva McGonagall. He knew that che would insure Harry would receive the response he needs.

A few days after sending the letter, Harry was woken by a tapping on his window. He got out of bed to see that it was another owl, with a letter attached to it's leg. Harry opened the window to let the bird in.  
"Ben?" He called.  
At once, he could sense the presence of his constant companion and mentor.  
"I've gotten a response, if you want to hear it." Harry said.  
"Go ahead." Ben replied.  
Harry untied the letter from the owl's leg and opened it. He sat down on his bed and began to read.

Dear Mr Potter,  
I am pleased that you seem so enthusiastic about attending Hogwarts this year. It shall be good to see you when term starts, as long as you do not cause too much trouble.  
However, I was concerned when reading that you lacked any knowledge concerning the magical world. I was under the impression that you would have been informed by now, concerning yours and your parents' world. It is unfortunate to see that this is not the case.  
While I am busy with preparations for the new year, I believe I will be able to make time to assist you in gathering your school supplies in approximately two weeks from now, on say, the fifth of August? Please send me your reply confirming whether or not this date works for you.  
I look forward to our meeting.  
Yours sincerely,  
Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress.

Harry sucked in a deep breath.  
"Well, what do you think Ben, should I trust her?"  
Ben was silent for a long time.  
"While I believe you should be cautious around anyone whom you do not know, I also believe that you should trust how you feel concerning this woman."  
Harry thought for a long time. Then, he grabbed some paper and pen and began to write his reply. After a little bit, he attached the letter to the leg of the owl, who promptly flew off again.  
Harry then went downstairs to where the Dursleys were watching the new TV that Uncle Vernon had bought after Harry had absolutely destroyed the first one.  
"Excuse me?" He said.  
Both Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon jerked in shock. Harry was surprised to not see Dudley there. However, he supposed that this should have been expected, considering how much all three Dursleys had changed over the past few days.  
After Harry's little Jedi mind-trick, Dudley had indeed gone to his room, where he spent several ours reflecting upon his life so far. The results were surprising, to say the least.  
Dudley had stopped eating so much food, claiming that he did not want to die of obesity before he was twenty. He had also stopped demanding everything and everything, and was now more careful with his belongings.  
However, the greatest surprise was that he no longer went out to bully other children. More than that, Dudley had actually apologised to Harry for the years of harassment, and claimed that he was only doing what he thought would get his parents happy with him so they would buy him more stuff.  
While Harry still felt that no amounts of sorry could take back all the years of beatings and Harry-hunting, he still felt that Dudley was now on a path to a better future.  
Another change had been the two elder Dursleys. Ever since Harry's little temper tantrum, they had both been very nervous around him, scarred that the slightest mistake could set him off again. Harry knew that, if the circumstances were different, then he might have been amused at how skittish they were now acting.   
However, he could only feel guilt and regret. Even though they had tormented him for as long as he could remember, Harry did not want anyone to look at him in fear.  
The only good part about the new situation was that Harry could practically get away with anything. He no longer had a long list of chores, which meant he could now devote more of his time to his training.  
Now, he watched as Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia glanced at him in fear.  
"Y Yes?" Aunt Petunia stuttered.  
"I've just come here to inform you that someone from Hogwarts will be coming here on the fifth of August to help me buy my supplies for school." He replied.  
"O Okay." Uncle Vernon stuttered.  
And with that, Harry left the house for another long day of training on the millennium Falcon.

On the day of August fifth, the Dursleys were up surprisingly early. Apparently, they were going out for the day and wanted an early start. Both Harry and Ben could sense that they were actually terrified at the prospect of a fully-grown wizard appearing at their door-step, especially after Harry's little display from which the adult Dursleys were still recovering.  
So, before it was even 9:00 a.m., the three Dursleys were out the door and down the street, leaving Harry alone.  
Ben and Harry had discussed what exactly they should do when their escort came. Should they reveal Harry's current living conditions, or should they keep it a secret? How should Harry act around them?  
Eventually, they decided that it would be best to try to convince whomever came to take Harry shopping for his supplies that where Harry was currently living was not a good place for him, and that something had to be done. This was truly the best idea, as neither Harry, nor Ben, wanted a repeat of the TV incident.  
At 10:00 a.m. sharp, Harry sensed an unfamiliar presence suddenly appear down the street. He waited at the door as the figure approached. Soon, they were at the door. As soon as Harry heard the person knocking on the door, he opened it.  
On the other side was a woman whom appeared in her middle-aged, with a stern appearance and a tight bun.  
"Good morning." He greeted. "Can I help you?"  
"Yes," The woman said with a slight Scottish accent. "I am looking for Mr Harry Potter."  
"Depends, who is asking?" Harry replied.  
"I am Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress of a school called Hogwarts." She replied.  
Harry let his lips twitch in a small smile.  
"Well, you have come to the right place. I am Harry Potter, and it is a pleasure to meet you Ma'am. Please, come in, take a seat. Do you wish for any refreshments?"  
Professor McGonagall blinked and stepped into the house confusedly.  
"Are your guardians here?"  
Harry allowed a slight frown.  
"No. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia have taken my cousin Dudley, out for the day. Please, let me take you to the living room. May I offer you some tea?"  
"That would be nice, thank you." Professor McGonagall replied as he led her into the living room.  
"But, did they leave you alone here?"  
Harry shrugged.  
"Yeah. I'm surprised they trusted me so much to have free rein of the house. Usually when they go out, I'm left in my... Well, anyway, I'll get the kettle boiling. Do you mind if we have a brief chat before we go to gather my supplies?"  
Harry could sense that McGonagall was quickly becoming suspicious about his living conditions. This was good. Ben and he had agreed to be brutally honest about how he had had to suffer, and that was what he was doing.  
Once Harry had prepared the tea and had given it to Professor McGonagall, he sat on one of the plush arm chairs and she sat on the couch facing him.  
"Well," She said after a while. "I must say, Mr Potter. Your reply was quite... Unexpected."  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
"Do you mean that you weren't expecting a reply?"  
Professor McGonagall shook her head.  
"No, I am speaking of the contents."  
"Oh?" Harry replied.  
"Yes." McGonagall continued. "I was under the impression that you would have been... More informed."  
"I am afraid you were mistaken." Harry replied.  
"Did your Aunt and Uncle not tell you anything?"  
Harry shrugged.  
"All they ever told me was that my parents were drunks who died in a car crash."  
McGonagall was so shocked that she actually spilt her tea. Harry grabbed one of the napkins which Aunt Petunia always kept on the coffee table and handed it to her.  
"A car crash?" The woman spluttered. "A car crash kill Lily and James Potter?"  
Harry was slightly amused to hear that Professor McGonagall's Scottish accent seemed to become more dominant in her anger.  
"I take it that that was not the case." He said.  
"Well, of course not." McGonagall replied. "A car crash in deed... Well I never... And to think, they told this to a child... Albus you..."  
"If you do not mind," Harry interrupted her mutters. "Do you think you could inform me of how exactly my parents died?"  
"Yes, well," McGonagall began. "It... It is a hard story." She sighed. "But I suppose you should hear it, if you are to return to our world."  
She sipped the little tea she had left and began the tale.  
"You see, around twenty years ago, a dark wizard rose to power. This wizard, all were afraid to say his name. He desired to dominate over the magical world and destroy all those he believed unworthy of magic. The only one who was brave enough to stand against him was Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore led a group of resistance against the dark wizard and his forces. Your parents were two members of this resistance..."  
"If I may," Harry interrupted. "Do you think you could use the dark wizard's name?"  
McGonagall shifted uncomfortably.  
"I... I can't."  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
"Why not? It isn't like he's going to jump out of the curtains."  
McGonagall sucked in a deep breath.  
"Fine. The dark wizard was called, Voldemort. Though most just call him You-Know-Who."  
Harry nodded.  
"I am sorry. I was just curious about the name. If you feel uncomfortable say it, then please, you do not have to say it."  
McGonagall sighed.  
"Thank you."  
She continued her story.  
"Eventually, just after your birth, Voldemort decided to target you and your parents. No one knows why. All that is known is that on October 31 almost ten years ago, Voldemort attacked your family home in Godric's Hollow. He managed to kill your parents, but were unable !o kill you."  
Harry could sense that she was beginning to feel sorrow at the memory of his parents' deaths, so he grabbed her another napkin.  
"Thank you." She replied, blowing her noise. "Anyway, on that night, you survived, but You-Know-Who was also destroyed. No one knows how, but the only mark that was left from that night was the scar on your forehead."  
Harry unconsciously lifted his hand to brush his fingers on his lightning-bolt shaped scar.  
"Since then, you have become famous in our world." McGonagall continued. "There is not a child in our world that does not know your name."  
"Then how," Harry finally said. "Did I end up here?"  
McGonagall sighed.  
"Albus, Professor Dumbledore, believed that you would be safe here with your Mother's family. He believed that here, you could be raised in a loving environment away from the spotlight..."  
Harry snorted.  
"Incredible. A loving environment, huh?"  
McGonagall sighed and shook her head.  
"I tried convince Albus that this was not a good idea. But he would not listen to me. But surely they couldn't have treated you that badly. You seem healthy enough."  
Harry scoffed.  
"Oh really?" He asked. "Then how do you explain this?"  
From out of his pocket, he drew the envelop from his Hogwarts letter. He practically shoved it under her nose.  
"Look carefully at the address." He said.  
McGonagall took the envelop from him and looked at it. Harry could sense her going from curiosity, to shock, to anger.  
"The cupboard... Under the stairs?" She said in a shaking voice.  
"Yes." Harry replied. "That is where I used to sleep, up until a week or two ago."  
McGonagall's hands were shaking. Harry allowed her a few moments to regain her composer before continuing.  
"It was also where the Dursleys put me whenever they wanted to punish me for behaviour which they believed to be, "freakish", and where they would lock me whenever they wanted to go out."  
Harry took a deep breath.  
"I am sure you are curious as to how a mere eleven year old knows how to perfectly make tea. Well, I learnt how to do such things, as well as make several meals including a full English breakfast, from the age of five. I also learnt how to clean the house, tend the garden, and do various other household tasks. My relatives believed that I should do such things to earn my keep."  
He could sense the emotions poring off of McGonagall. Among them were predominantly anger. However, there was also sorrow and guilt.  
"I..." She stammered. "Didn't anyone notice...?"  
"On my very first day of primary school, my treatment here had been put under much scrutiny." Harry replied. "The Dursleys were headed for a whole lot of trouble. However, after a week, it was as if nothing had happened, and everyone ignored any sines of abuse from me and bad behaviour from my cousin. The teacher who had originally brought up the problem had disappeared, along with any suspicion against my relatives. It was like magic."  
Professor McGonagall broke into furious mutterings. It got to the point where Harry could not understand her. He wasn't even sure if she was even speaking English any more. After a few minutes, he decided to break her out of her fury.  
"Professor," He began.  
Instantly, she broke out of her furious tirade.  
"I am hoping that you could possibly help me. There was an... Incident, when I confronted my relatives concerning my letter. They, more Uncle Vernon, insulted my parents, which resulted in me... Breaking the TV. Thankfully, that was the only thing that was broken. However, I do not wish to repeat the experience, as I fear that next time I may destroy something more than a TV. So I beg you, please, is there something, anything, you can do to get me away from here."  
For a long time, Professor McGonagall just sat there, staring at him. Finally, she spoke.  
"Yes, I do believe that this is hardly an environment for a young wizard. I shall see what can be done."  
"Thank you." Harry replied.  
McGonagall sighed.  
"I am so sorry, Mr Potter."  
"That's okay, professor." Harry replied. "I highly doubt you had much say in where I went after my parents died."  
McGonagall sighed again.  
"Yes, but I should have tried harder." She argued. "I was here you know. Sat watching your relatives for an entire day before Dumbledore arrived to leave you with these people. I told him that they were the worst sort. But did he listen to me? Of course not."  
Harry chuckled. He could sense that McGonagall would become one of his favourite teachers. She seemed to genuinely care, which was something which Harry had hardly seen in a person, excluding Miss Bennet and of course Ben.  
"Do not worry, Professor McGonagall." Harry replied. "I do not blame you for Dumbledore's actions. At least you tried."  
McGonagall sighed. Harry cleared his throat.  
"Well, that was all I had to say. If you are ready, I believe we should go and get my supplies."

McGonagall had taken him to London, through the use of something called Apporition. Harry had to admit, he did not wish to repeat the experience.  
The old witch led him through a dingy old pub called the Leaky Caldron, to a brick wall. Harry observed carefully as she tapped certain bricks to open an arch-way.  
Harry could not prevent his jaw from dropping at the sight.  
So many people dressed in robes. So many shops selling items he had never imagined. And oh, The Force.  
The Force just seeped through everything in this alley. It was so overwhelming.  
Eventually, McGonagall had led him to the wizarding bank, Gringots.  
After a long cart ride down to his vault where he gathered a large amount of money, as you never know when you might need some extra, Professor McGonagall took him to the robes shop, Madam Malcon's.  
"I have to lurches some new supplies for my lessons." She said. "I am in dire need of new tortoises after last year's disaster. Will you be alright here?"  
"Yes Professor." Harry replied.  
After McGonagall left, Harry entered the shop. Instantly, the witch in charge led him to the back, where another boy with very light hair stood on a stool. He was placed on a stool next to this boy.  
"Hogwarts too?" The boy asked in a drawling voice.  
"Yes." Harry replied.  
"My Father is off buy books while my Mother is looking at wands." The boy continued.  
Harry had the impression that this was heavily rehearsed.  
"Really?" Harry replied. "Because I was under the impression that only the wizard in question could find his wand."  
"Yes... Well..." The boy stammered, not expecting this response. "Where are your parents then?" He asked, obviously trying to change the subject.  
"They're dead." Harry replied.  
"Oh, sorry." The boy replied, not sounding sorry at all. "But they were, you know, one of us?"  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
"Do you mean a witch and wizard? Yes, but I hardly see how that matters."  
"Oh." The boy replied. "I see."  
Harry frowned. McGonagall had mentioned that many old wizarding families believed that people who came from non-magical families were somehow less worthy of magic. Harry of course, found this ridiculous.  
"Tell me, do you believe that people who come from old wizarding families are somehow more worthy of magic than those who do not?" He asked.  
"Of course." The boy replied, a little too quickly for Harry's opinion. "Some families are just better than others."  
"Oh really?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow. "Tell me, who are you to say who is and who isn't worthy of magic?"  
The boy spluttered, but Harry continued.  
"After all, you are just an eleven year old boy."  
"My Father..." He spluttered.  
"Is just a man." Harry retorted. "No man, no matter how old the family, can dictate who is and who isn't worthy. It should be up to The F... Magic, who is and who isn't worthy of it's gifts."  
"I..." The boy began, but stopped.  
Harry could sense that he had planted the seeds of doubt in his mind. But before the conversation could continue, Harry was informed that he was done.  
"Well, I suppose I shall see you at school." He said to the boy who was still in shock.  
And with that, Harry left the shop.  
McGonagall was not back yet, so Harry decided to wait for her. However, his plans changed once he felt The Force drawing him to somewhere.  
This somewhere ended up being a shop full of magical pets. There was one that he was specifically drawn to. And before he knew it, he was the proud owner of a snowy white owl.  
When McGonagall returned, she seemed somewhat amused.  
"I thought I left you to get your robes."  
"I did." Harry replied. "But then this beauty just started calling to me."  
McGonagall seemingly rolled her eyes.  
"Well, let us get the rest of your supplies."  
After a while, all that was left was for Harry to get his wand.  
Both he and Ben were curious to see these strange focuses for The Force.  
Once he entered Olivander's shop, he was astounded by the amount of force energy that permeated the air. On every wall, he could sense a strong presence in The Force.  
Suddenly, Harry could sense a person sneaking up behind him. He instantly turned to face an old man.  
"Olivander, I presume?" Harry asked, already knowing the answer.  
Olivander smiled.  
"Indeed. Quite observant, Mr Potter." He said. "I must admit, not many are able to not be fooled by my little trick."  
"I'm not most people." Harry replied.  
"Indeed your not."  
Harry had the distinct impression that Olivander was more powerful than he was letting on.  
After the old wand-maker had finished taking his measurements with an enchanted measuring tape, he was given wand after wand.  
None seemed to work. And with every failed wand, Olivander seemed to get more excited.  
Eventually, Harry decided to close his eyes and let The Force guide him. When he managed to find the wand that felt right, Olivander seemed to become extremely excited.  
"How curious." The old man muttered.  
"What's curious?" Harry asked.  
"This wand," Olivander said. "Holy and Phoenix feather. The Phoenix who provided this feather provided one other. It is curious that you would chose this wand, when it's brother gave you that scar."  
Harry's eyes widened.  
"Yes, well," McGonagall suddenly said, clearing her throat. "We have a very busy day. If you could please give Mr Potter a price for his wand, we will be leaving."  
And with that, Harry paid for his wand and left the shop.

After hesitantly dropping Harry back off at the Dursleys, Professor McGonagall went straight to Hogwarts. Ben watched in amusement as the witch stormed into Dumbledores office. This was going to be fun. Ben was only sorry he didn't have pop-corn.  
Ben would have felt petty for the man. Minerva McGonagall was truly a terrifying woman. However, after all that the wizard had done to hurt his son, Ben was not feeling that merciful. If he were still alive, then regardless of him being Ben Solo or Kylo Ren, the office would have been absolutely destroyed in a matter of seconds.  
"Having fun?"  
Ben turned in surprise to see his Father.  
Ben knew that, within the Cosmic Force, it was possible to communicate with anyone, regardless of their previous Force sensitivity. He knew that he could very easily talk to both of his parents.  
It wasn't that he was avoiding his parents. It was just that... Okay, he was avoid his parents.  
They had been there to greet him with open arms upon his death. It appeared that they forgave him for all that he had done.  
However, Ben hadn't yet forgiven himself.  
It was especially hard with his Father.  
Every time he looked at Han Solo, he could not help but think of how he had killed him. Of how his Father had practically begged him to come home, how he had given him nothing but love and kindness, and he had paid this by running him through with his lightsabre.  
"Dad." He said, tensely.  
Han sighed.  
"Ben, we really should talk."  
Ben shook his head.  
"No, I should go check on Harry..."  
"No." Han replied. "Look, I get it. You're still feeling sorry for what happened."  
Ben looked down. Han put a comforting hand on his shoulder.  
"Don't worry. I was never angry at you."  
Ben could feel tears in his eyes.  
"I'm sorry." He muttered.  
"Hey, hey." Han said. "Don't worry. All that matters is that you did the right thing in the end. And hey, you've done a pretty good job with that kid of yours."  
Ben smiled.  
"Harry is amazing, just like his mother."  
"And his father." Han replied. "He's so much like you, so curious about everything. He even looks like you. I can still remember when you first showed him the Falcon..."  
"You saw that?" Ben asked.  
Han grinned.  
"We all saw that." He replied. "Leia was in tears. And do not listen to what she, Luke or anyone says, I was not crying."  
Ben laughed.  
"Of course you weren't."  
Both men laughed. Then, they turned back to where McGonagall was still yelling at Dumbledore.  
"She is terrifying." Ben said.  
"She could give Chewy a run for his money." Han agreed.  
Ben grinned.  
"I bet if the template for the clone army was Minerva McGonagall, the old Republic would have one the clone wars within a week."  
Both men laughed again.  
"Do you think Harry will be alright?" Ben asked.  
Han smiled.  
"That kid will be fine. He's tougher than you know. And anyway, he's got you and the rest of us backing him up, even the ones who can't be seen."  
Ben smiled.  
"Thank you."  
"Hey, don't worry about it." Han replied. "But please, come visit some time. We miss you."  
"I'll try." Ben replied. "But I'll have to see when Harry isn't in danger of getting himself in trouble."  
Han groaned.  
"He's part Skywalker, part Solo, and part Palpatine. He's always in danger of getting himself in trouble."  
"Don't bet on it." Ben replied.  
Both men laughed again, before Ben decided it was time for him to return to Harry. Before he left, Han stopped him.  
"Hey, one more thing." Han said.  
"Yes?"  
"Ben, I proud of you." Han said. "You've really done a good job with Harry. I'm sure that one day, he'll be one hell of a Force User."  
Ben smiled.  
"Thank you."  
And with that, father and son parted.


	6. United, even when devided

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry goes to Hogwarts and makes some new friends. Also, Ben's a fly-on-theWall.

Chapter 6:

The weeks leading up to the first of September were extremely tense in the Dursley household. Harry could sense that with every passing day, his Aunt and Uncle were anticipating the day that he would finally leave for Hogwarts, which would give them a break from him until next summer. Or at least, that's what they thought.  
Harry had decided that, once he left number four Privet Drive, he would not return, regardless of what anyone, including Ben, said. He had had enough of this negative atmosphere. He could sense that if he continued to live here, it would become harder and harder for him to keep control of the darkness within him. He didn't care where he went, he could live on the Falcon for all he cared, he just wanted out.  
He told this to Ben, a few days before it was time to leave.  
"Ben," He began. "You know how I will be leaving soon?"  
"Yes?" Ben replied.  
"Well, I have decided," Harry continued. "I will be leaving this place, permanently."  
Ben was silent, so Harry continued.  
"I don't care what anyone says. Not even you can stop me from leaving this horrible place."  
He sucked in a deep breath.  
"I... I don't want to have another TV incident. I feel as if the darkness will only become stronger if I remain here."  
"Harry."  
"You can't stop me, I've made my decision. This is what's best for everyone."  
"Harry," Ben interrupted. "I am not going to try to convince you out of this decision."  
"Your not?" Harry asked, surprised.  
"No." Ben replied. "I too, believe that it is in your best interest to leave here. You need to live where you can remained as balanced as possible during your training. This is not a good place for this. I thought that you might wish to leave, so I am not surprised at your decision."  
"Errr, thanks." Harry replied.  
"But where will you go?" Ben replied.  
"Errr," Harry said sheepishly. "I was thinking of just... Errr... Living in the Falcon and errr... Going where the wind takes me."  
Ben chuckled.  
"As long as you don't go on a joy-ride."  
Harry pouted.  
"This is only for during the summer when I'm not at Hogwarts. I would by my own place with the giant moment of wizard money I've gt in Gringots, only I want to save it for school stuff and I highly doubt that anyone, not even in the wizarding world, would just let an eleven-year-old by his own home. And anyone, I don't even know how to fly the Falcon."  
Ben chuckled again.  
"Yes, I do suppose that you will soon need to learn to pilot a ship."  
Harry immediately jerked up in excitement.  
"Really?"  
"Next year." Ben replied, which caused Harry to deflate.

On August thirty-first, he approached Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia.  
"Excuse me?"  
Both adult Dursleys instantly jerked in shock.  
"W What?" Aunt Petunia stuttered.  
"Tomorrow, I will be leaving for Hogwarts." Harry began. "I need to catch a train at King's-Cross station at 11:00 a.m. I was wandering if you would take me to the station."  
"F fine." Replied Uncle Vernon.  
Harry continued.  
"After I leave tomorrow, we will never see each other again."  
"What?" Aunt Petunia screeched. "B but you can't. D Dumbledore..."  
"I don't care." Harry replied. "After what happened last month with the TV, I think it's best if I leave, permanently."  
He looked at his relatives with a gaze full of contempt.  
"For almost ten years, you have treated me poorly. You physically and emotionally abused me, treated me like a slave, fed me hardly enough food to survive... I have had enough. So, after tomorrow, we will never see each other again. If Dumbledore or anyone else says otherwise, tell them that I left for my own free will for mine and everyone else's well-being."  
And with that, he walked back to his soon to be former bedroom, leaving the dursleys shaking in fear.

The next day, Harry woke up bright and early. He quickly checked his trunk to make sure he had everything he needed. The night before, he and Ben had gone to the Falcon to gather as much of the Jedi training equipment as they could. He had managed to fit several of the training orbs and training lightsabres in his trunk. He had decided to grab multiple lightsabres, as he hoped to find others at Hogwarts who he could teach the ways of The Force.  
In addition, he also had a training sabre attached to his waistband, hidden by his overly bagging clothing. He hoped to be able to hide it with his robes, once he got to Hogwarts. He believe it would be best to carry a weapon with him in this new environment, as you never new when you might need to defend yourself. While the training sabres could not do as much damage as the actual thing, they could still severely hurt someone when turned to the right settings, as Harry had had to learn the hard way.  
When Uncle Vernon was ready to take him to King's-Cross, he grabbed his trunk in his left and, so he could have easier access to his sabre. He had opted to use his lightsabre in his right hand and his wand in his left, as the former was more of a close-quarter weapon, which he preferred to have in his dominant hand, while the latter was more of a long-range weapon.  
His snowy owl, whom Harry had named Hedwig, flew onto his shoulder. He had decided not to put her in a cage, as he did not wish to imprison anyone, even if she was only an owl.  
Harry did not look back as he left the door of Number 4, privet drive for the last time. He just calmly put his trunk in the boot of Uncle Vernon's car and slid into the back seat.  
The drive to King's-Cross was tense. Both occupants of the car were relieved when they finally reached the station.  
After Harry got his trunk out of the boot and onto a trolley, he looked at Uncle Vernon for the last time.  
"Well, good by then." He said. "I would say it's been nice knowing you, but..."  
And with that, he turned away. As he walked into the station, he could sense Uncle Vernon leaving at a very fast speed. He did not look back.  
"Now, where did Professor McGonagall say to catch the train?" He muttered to himself.  
He pulled out the ticket that Professor McGonagall had given him and looked at the platform.  
nine and three quarters.  
He looked at platform nine, then platform ten.  
"What do you think Ben?" He muttered quietly.  
"Open your senses." Ben replied. "Let The Force guide you. It may be an allusion."  
And so Harry did. He closed his eyes and focused upon the two platforms. The Force guided him to the barrier in between platforms nine and ten. With hesitation, Harry put a hand on the barrier, only for his hand to go straight through it.  
Sucking in a deep breath, he walked through where the barrier was. He soon found himself on a platform full of families, whom Harry could sense were all strong with The Force. Looking to one side he could see a scarlet steam engine.  
Sucking in a breath, he could feel the air seeping with The Force just as Diagon Alley had been.  
After a moment of him clearing his mind from the overwhelming amount of Force energy, he began to push his trolley to the train, weaving through the many witches and wizards that were gathered, saying their fare-wells to their children.  
For a second, Harry felt a strong sense of sadness and longing. He wished that he could have a family of his own. A mother to hold him when he was sad and comfort him when he needed it, a father for him to look up to and who will protect him from all that would harm him. Maybe even siblings for him to play with. It was at times like this, when he saw happy families, that he felt alone.  
He shook his head.  
He was not alone. He had Ben. And anyway, his parents were always with him, as they were one with The Force.  
Finally, he boarded the train, using The Force to help him lift his trunk off of the trolley, and went into an empty compartment. Using The Force, he lifted his trunk into the luggage rack and sat down.  
As he waited for the train to leave, he meditated.  
He could sense The Force surrounding him and the platform. He could sense hundreds, if not thousands, of people, the vast majority of whom were Force sensitive. He supposed that the few non-Force sensitive were the parents of students whom came from non-Force sensitive families.  
There were so many of them, he wondered if this was what it felt like to walk through the old Jedi temple. Though, he doubted that there would have been so many wield emotions, as the Jedi apparently believe that to much emotion could lead to the Dark Side.  
He was so absorbed in his meditation, that he was surprised when he could sense that the train was leaving the station, as he could feel that many of the presences were quickly drawing further away.  
Harry decided to focus less on The Force surrounding him, and more on his memory of what he had read so far from his text books.  
He found many of them interesting, especially the many ways that these wizards had found to manipulate The Force.  
He remembered that Professor McGonagall had told him that she taught Transfiguration. Harry was curious as to how exactly The Force could be used to change the form and mature of one thing into another. He was also interested in Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts, as they both seemed as if they could be used in combat.  
Something that had peaked his interest was potions, as it sounded very similar to cooking. Over the years, though he had originally been forced to cook for the Dursleys, he had actually come to enjoy it. When Aunt Petunia wasn't breathing down his neck, he found it quite relaxing and sometimes even therapeutic. He was interested to see how Potions was in comparison.  
Soon, he could sense someone approaching his compartment. From what he could sense, it was a boy around his age.  
He opened his eyes just in time to see the compartment door open to reveal a red-haired boy.  
"Hello?" The boy said hesitantly. "Can I sit here? Everywhere else his full."  
"Sure." Harry replied.  
After putting his trunk in the luggage rack, the boy sat on the seats opposite him.  
For a long time, they both just sat in awkward silence. Harry was not sure how to interact with children his own age, as Dudley had been sure to scare away anyone who could have potentially become his friend. So he was not sure how to begin a conversation with this boy. Thankfully, the boy began it for him.  
"So," The red-head began. "This your first year too?"  
"Yes." Harry replied.  
"Okay." The boy replied.  
Another long silence.  
"I'm Ron Weasley." The boy finally blurted.  
"Harry Potter." He replied.  
Instantly, the boy's eyes widened.  
"Really?"  
He nodded.  
"Do... Do you have...?"  
"Yes, I have the scar." Harry replied.  
"Blimey." Ron said.  
Harry could sense that Ron was shocked.  
"Please, don't act like that." He said. "I am just like everyone else."  
"But... But you..." Ron began.  
Harry lifted a hand.  
"I do not remember exactly what happened that night. Please, I don't want anyone treating me differently because I'm apparently famous. Really, I only found out about how exactly my parents died less than a month ago."  
Harry could see Ron become slack-jawed and could sense his ever increasing shock.  
"But... How can you not know?"  
Harry shrugged.  
"I was raised by my non-magical relatives, who were not exactly forth-coming with information."  
He looked at Ron seriously.  
"Please, I'm only here to learn magic and make friends. If you are only interested in me for my fame, then please leave. But, if you genuinely want to be my friend, they feel free to stay."  
Ron remained in his seat, and Harry could sense that he was still shocked, but that he genuinely wanted to be his friend.  
"So," Harry began finally. "Tell me about yourself."

Ron told him about many things, including a sport called quidditch, and his favourite team, the Chudley Cannons. Then, he talked about his large family. Harry could sense that Ron felt slightly jealous of his elder brothers, and as if he has to try extremely hard so that he would not be overshadowed by them. He could also sense that Ron felt embarrassed about being poor, but Harry was quick to comfort him about this.  
"You know," He began. "I actually think you are quite rich."  
"You do?" Ron asked, surprised.  
"Yeah." Harry replied. "Yes, you might not be financially rich, but at least you are surrounded by people who love you. I will I had so many siblings and two parents who loved me so much."  
"Oh," Ron said, blinking. "I... I'm sorry."  
"No, it's okay." He replied.  
There conversation continued, with Ron talking more about the wizarding world, mostly of Quidditch, until their conversation was interrupted.  
The compartment door slid open to reveal a bushy-haired girl with rather large front teeth.  
"Excuse me." She began in a somewhat bossy voice. "Have either of you seen a toad? A boy named Neville has lost one."  
"No." Harry replied. "But would you like some help looking for it?"  
"Yes, that would be good, thanks." The girl replied.  
Harry got up.  
"Wait here." He said to Ron before leaving.  
He used The Force to guide him, searching for an escaped toad. Eventually, he found the toad near the front carriage. Clutching the still riving toad, he turned to face the girl, who had followed him.  
"That... That was incredible." She said. "How did you..."  
Harry shrugged.  
"Just a little trick."  
The girl began to lead him back to the boy who had lost the toad.  
"So, what's your name?" Harry asked after they had returned the toad.  
"I'm Hermione Granger." She replied.  
"Nice to meet you." He said. "I'm Harry. Harry Potter."  
"Are you really?" She asked.  
Harry could feel her becoming excited.  
"I've read all about you..."  
Harry cut her off.  
"Don't believe everything you read." He said.  
"B But..." Hermione stuttered. "It's in a book, written by a professional..."  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
"Yes, and often non-fiction books can be influenced by the author's own bias." He remarked. "Tell me, what exactly do the books say about me?"  
"They say that you defeated You-'know-Who, when you were only a baby." Hermione began. "And that ever since Albus Dumbledore has been raising you in a secret location and training you and your powerful gifts."  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
"Tell me Hermione, does it look like I've been getting special training for the past ten years?"  
"Well umm... No." Hermione replied.  
"Well then." Harry continued. "I would ask that you not make assumptions of be, based on books written by people who know nothing of me."  
"Oh, sorry." Hermione replied.  
Harry could feel the girl becoming very embarrassed.  
"Hey, do you want to come and sit with me?" He said.  
"Sure." Hermione replied, instantly cheering up.  
After returning to the compartment and introduce Hermione to Ron, they all sat began talking about their home life. Hermione apparently came from a non-magical family, and was extremely excited when she found out she was a witch.  
However, only a few minutes after she had joined the compartment, the door slid open again. Harry looked up to see the boy from Madam Malkin's.  
"Hello again." Harry said. "Fancy seeing you."  
"You never told me you were Harry Potter." The boy retorted.  
"You never asked." Harry replied calmly. "Now, if are here because you want to be friends, primarily because you wish to leach off my fame, then I would ask for you to leave. Otherwise, feel free to take a seat."  
The boy just stood there for a long time. Finally, he entered the compartment and sat down.  
"I have... Been thinking about what we discussed." The boy began.  
Harry could sense the unsurely coming off of the boy.  
"And?" Harry asked.  
"And," The boy sucked in a deep breath. "I am... Willing, to hear other opinions."  
Harry smiled.  
"Good. So, what's your name."  
"Malfoy." The boy replied. "Draco Malfoy."  
Ron snickered. Instantly, Draco scowled.  
"Think my name's funny, do you? It's not hard to see who you are..."  
Harry could sense the growing hostility growing between the two.  
"Am I missing something?" He asked of the two boys."  
They both turned to him.  
"His family and my family famously don't like each other." Ron began.  
"Why?" Harry asked.  
They blinked, then turned to each other.  
"I... Don't know how it began." Ron began.  
"Nor do I." Draco agreed.  
"Then why are you still arguing?" Hermione asked. "If you don't even know what your fighting for?"  
"It's a family thing." The both replied.  
"The sins of the father are not the sins of the son." Harry replied. "Just because your ancestors started this feud, does not mean that you have to continue it."  
Both boys looked to him, then each other.  
"I suppose he has a point." Draco conceded.  
He extended a hand to Ron, who shook it hesitantly.  
Harry grinned.  
"Good, now kissing and make up."  
Both boys immediately flinched back from each other, disgust on their faces. Harry laughed.  
"Joking."  
Both boys calmed down. Draco then turned to Hermione.  
"I still do not know who you are." He said.  
"I'm Hermione Granger." She replied.  
Draco began to sneer at the obviously non-magical name, but Harry quickly shot him a look to remind him that he was supposed to be open to opinions.  
"It is, nice to meet you, Hermione." Draco managed to say.  
"Thanks." She replied. "It's nice to meet you too."  
They all fell into silence, not sure of what to say. Finally, Hermione brought up the subject of the Hogwarts houses.  
"I think I'm going to be in Ravenclaw." She began. "Though I wouldn't mind being in Gryffindor."  
"My entire family has been in Gryffindor." Ron said. "So I'm probably going to be there too."  
"I am most likely going to be in Slytherin." Draco began.  
Harry could instantly feel Ron become tense.  
"You mean the same house that You-Know-Who was in?" Ron asked darkly. "I've heard that there's not a witch or wizard that was in Slytherin that hasn't gone dark."  
"Ron," Harry said warningly. "Please do not judge an entire house due to the actions of a few. Do you believe that all Germans are Nazis?"  
Ron shook his head.  
"Sorry." He muttered.  
An awkward silence fell upon the compartment.  
"So," Hermione began. "What house do you think you'll be in Harry?"  
Harry shrugged.  
"I don't know, nor do I care."  
"You, don't?" Ron asked, blinking.  
Harry shook his head.  
"I find it a bit ridiculous, to tell you the truth." He replied. "Separate people based on personality traits of all things? And anyone, we need all sorts of people to make a society work."  
The three other children blinked.  
"You know, he makes a point." Hermione finally said.  
The two other boys nodded in agreement. Harry smiled.  
"I think we should make a promise." He began. "No matter what house we get put into, we will still at least try to be friends."  
He put his hand in the centre of their group. After much hesitation, they one by one put their hands on top of his.  
Harry smiled. This friends making business was easier than he had thought.

For the rest for the journey, the four new friends talked about various things together. Eventually, the sky grew darker and the three boys changed into their robes while Hermione, who had already put on hers, waited outside. Together they left the train and walked over to where a giant of a man was yelling for all of the first-years. They climbed into one of the many boat and sailed with the rest of their classmates over the incredible lake.  
Harry was once again amazed by The Force energy which flowed through the great castle of Hogwarts. It was ancient, powerful, almost sentient. Harry felt as if The Force was practically singing to him.  
Finally, they reached the other side of the lake. The giant led them to the front doors, where Harry could both see and sense Professor McGonagall. After leading them into the castle and telling them about the houses and the standards of the school, she left them in a side chamber for a few minutes.  
Harry could sense the excitement and nervousness seeping off of the gathered students in waves. Harry just calmly stood and waited.  
Finally, Professor McGonagall returned and escorted them into the Great Hall.  
He looked around in amazement. He could sense the hundreds of students around him. He could sense the powerful presences of the teachers at the head-table. It was almost overwhelming.  
Finally, the arrived at the front of the hall. Professor McGonagall pulled out a three legged stool and an old hat.  
At first look, the hat seemed like just another old hat. However, after examining it through The Force, he could feel something old, wise, powerful, within the hat.  
Finally, a rip appeared in the hat, resembling a hat, and it began to sing.  
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,  
But don't judge on what you see,  
I'll eat myself if you can find  
A smarter hat than me.  
You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your top hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat  
And I can cap them all.  
There's nothing hidden in your head  
The Sorting Hat can't see,  
So try me on and I will tell you  
Where you ought to be.  
You might belong in Gryffindor,  
Where dwell the brave at heart,  
Their daring, nerve and chivalry  
Set Gryffindors apart;  
You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,  
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true  
And unafraid of toil;  
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
If you've a ready mind,  
Where those of wit and learning,  
Will always find their kind;  
Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,  
Those cunning folk use any means  
To achieve their ends.  
So put me on! Don't be afraid!  
And don't get in a flap!  
You're in safe hands (though I have none)  
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"  
The hall applauded. Harry joined in, though his mind was thinking over the song. It was rather informative in regards to the four houses. Though, he was still not sure which house he would be in.  
Professor McGonagall pulled out a long list and began to read off names.  
When she called out, "Granger, Hermione", the bushy-haired girl nervously walked to the stool. Harry shot her a reassuring smile.  
She sat on the stool for a long time, before the hat finally called:  
"Ravenclaw!"  
Smiling, Hermione got off of the stool and walked over to the Ravenclaw house table.  
The hat had only just touched Draco's head when it yelled out:  
"Slytherin!"  
Harry smiled as his blond friend walked over to the Slytherin table.  
After only a few more names, it was his turn.  
As soon as McGonagall called out the name "Potter, Harry", the entire hall fell into silence. Harry could sense that they were all waiting in excited anticipation, wondering where he would be sorted. He did not need The Force to tell him that they were all staring at him. Harry ignored them and walked to the stool. Though Harry wouldn't admit it, he was slightly nervous. He could sense that the house he was sorted into would greatly affect how people saw him.  
The last thought that he had before the hat was placed on his head was,  
"Oh, I hope this thing doesn't have head lice."  
As soon as the hat fell upon his head, he could sense a presence attempting to penetrate his mind. After scanning it for any ill-intent, he allowed it into his mind.  
[Hmm, how strange.]  
Harry jerked, but then realised that it must be the hat.  
[Such power.]  
The hat remarked.  
[There's courage,, definitely. Oh, and there's intelligence here too. And ambition... You wish for people to see you as you truly are... You wish to not be alone...]  
The hat continued.  
[You wish to help others who can't help themselves... You wish to put your powers to good... You wish for a family who loves you... You do not care for sides, you only wish for people to stand together... You have a kind heart, and are very loyal to those you love. I see now, you belong in...]  
"Hufflepuff!" The hat called.  
Harry removed it and gave it back to McGonagall.  
The entire hall was silent for a long time. Then, the Hufflepuff table erupted into applause. Smiling, Harry walked over and sat down.  
He watched as the remaining first-years were sorted, and smiled as Ron walked over to the Gryffindor table and sat near some red-heads whom Harry assumed were his brothers.  
Once the feast began, the entire table broke into several conversations. Many of the older students greeted him and the first-years warmly.  
Harry could sense the warmth and joy which seeped off of the Hufflepuff table. Every single last member seemed welcoming. This made Harry feel happy. He lost track of how many people talked to him. At first they mostly asked him questions such as:  
"Are you really Harry Potter?"  
Harry quickly informed them that he did not feel comfortable talking about the night his parents had died, and that he only wished to be treated like everyone else. They all quickly calmed down and smiled understandingly.  
As Harry explored the hall through The Force, he took his awareness to the staff table. For some reason, one of the teachers was glaring at him. He could feel the hatred rolling off of the man in waves.  
"Hey, who's that?" He asked a fourth year boy who had introduced himself as Cedric Diggory.  
"Oh, that's Professor Snape." Cedric replied. "He teaches potions."  
Harry frowned.  
"He doesn't seem to like me."  
Cedric shrugged.  
"He doesn't like anyone that much. It's best to be careful around him."  
"Thanks." Harry replied.  
He returned to exploring the staff table. What drew his attention next was... Oh, Force...  
He could sense a high amount of concentrated Dark Force energy radiating from one of the teachers. The teacher seemed jittery, with a purple turban. Harry had to steady himself. For some reason, it felt familiar, but he did not know why.  
He decided to stop looking at the staff table after this.

After the feast, the prefects led them down to the common-room, which was near the kitchens. After showing them how to enter the common-room, they were led to there dorms.  
Harry had to share a dorm with six other boys, Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-fletchley, Zacharias Smith, Wayne Hopkins, Roger Malone and Kevin Entwhistle. He did not care, it seemed better than the Dursleys anyway.  
The entire house seemed nicer than the Dursleys. They were all welcoming, for the post part. For the first time since Harry could remember, he felt as if he was wanted.  
He thought about his new friends, Draco, Hermione and Ron. He could sense that, despite them all being in different houses, they would soon build a bound no one could break.  
He went to bed, with a smile on his face, thinking about all that had happened that day.

Ben smiled as he watched his son fall asleep. He did not think he had ever felt the boy this happy. He was glad, to see his son finally receive the joy he deserved. He was content in the knowledge that, at last, Harry would be experiencing the joy that had been denied to him his entire life.  
Satisfied that his son was safe and well, he went to where he could sense that McGonagall was in her office with a cup of tea and talking to another teacher, whom Ben recognised to be the head of Hufflepuff, Pomona Sprout.  
"... Really nice of you inviting me here Minerva." Sprout was saying. "Though I must say, why have you invited me here so late?"  
Ben could sense the tension within McGonagall.  
"You see Pomona, I wish to speak to you about one of your new students. Young Mr Potter, to be exact."  
"Oh?" Sprout asked quizzically. "I did hear that you were the one to take him shopping for his school supplies."  
"Yes." McGonagall replied. "As you may recall, after James and Lily's deaths, Dumbledore, in his infinite wisdom, thought it best if the boy were raised by Lily's muggle sister Petunia and her husband Vernon Dursley. Albus believed that they would give him the love and care he needs. Well, when I went to pick him up, I am afraid that I learnt some very... Troubling things concerning his home life."  
"Oh really?" Sprout asked. "It must be bad if you are so frazzled."  
McGonagall sighed.  
"Pomona, if you were there... It took every bit of strength I had not to take him away from there at once."  
"What is it, Minerva?" Sprout asked, concerning pouring off of her.  
McGonagall sighed again.  
"It began when he showed me the exact address of his letter. Do you recall how the address even shows the exact living quarters of the student in question?"  
"Yes." Sprout asked, confused.  
-Well, right where it should have said his bedroom, it said the cupboard under the stairs."  
Sprout almost spilt her tea.  
"The what?" She asked in horror. "Do you mean to tell me that..."  
"His relatives have been making him sleep in the cupboard under the stairs for the past ten years." McGonagall finished.  
"But that's no place to keep a child." Sprout said in outrage. "It... It is so small, and dark... And there could be all kinds of spiders and other insects..."  
"It gets worse." McGonagall said.  
"I do not see how it could..." Sprout began.  
"Mr Potter informed me that, from the age of five at least, he had been made to do practically all of the housework, including the cooking." McGonagall continued.  
Sprout was becoming pale.  
"The poor boy knew nothing of our world, not even of how his parents died."  
"Well, you couldn't expect them to tell a child that his parents had been murdered by a dark wizard." Sprout began.  
"Yes, but what they did tell him was possibly even more atrocious." McGonagall retorted.  
"What?" Sprout asked, clearly dreading the answer.  
McGonagall sucked in a breath. Ben could sense the anger still pouring off of her.  
"They told him that they were drunks who died in an accident involving a muggle form of transport called a car."  
This time, Sprout actually spilt her tea.  
"Well I never... Telling that... To a child..."  
McGonagall sighed.  
"And now you see why I called you here."  
"But, surely Albus could..." Sprout began.  
"Albus was the one who put him there." McGonagall retorted. "He thinks that Mr Potter is actually safe there, even after I told him everything."  
Sprout's hands were shaking. Ben could sense her temper rising.  
"Well, we have to do something." She said.  
"Yes, I am aware of this." McGonagall agreed. "I was hoping that you could help me."  
"What can I do?" Sprout asked.  
"As Mr Potter's head of house, I need you to keep an eye on him." McGonagall began. "Make sure he is alright. I will try to convince Albus to listen to reason. If not, then we may have to go to the ministry itself."  
Sprout sighed.  
"I am willing to do anything. I will not stand aside while one of my students is suffering in a place that he is forced to call home."  
McGonagall smiled.  
"Thank you."  
Ben also smiled. Dumbledore could not so easily manipulate the situation now. With any luck, the Dursleys will face the justice they deserve. He was now curious to see how the two witches will react next summer, when Harry executes his plan of living on the wind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so we have a magic talking hat, that can look into your mind and tell what your strongest personality trait, or at least what the trait you most value, is. This thing was enchanted by one of the most powerful wizards ever. And what is my biggest question about it. Does the thing have head lice? I mean, hat has been worn by countless eleven-year-olds, and there his no telling how many of them had the little things jumping around on their heads.  
> Anyway, yes, I'm using Ben as a fly-on-the-wall. It's the perfect way to keep the POV in the three main characters, Ben, Harry, and Rey, while allowing the reader to see scenes that would not normally be seen by these three characters, such as McGonagall talking to Sprout or last chapter when McGonagall ripped Dumbledore a new one.  
> Anyway, thanks for reading!


End file.
